Well it is official - I have become a major slacker in terms of writing in my blog. I will try to do better, but I have discovered how much homework/projects I have due for school.
I am going to give a short recap of my weekend in Brussels in one word: splendid. I cannot even begin to describe how blessed I am to have families that I can stay with. I absolutely loved seeing and staying with Marianne - I felt like she was connection to my mom and it made me so happy. Of course, she and Geoffrey live in a beautiful home with three incredible dogs and two cats. I am happy that Will was able to come with me because I would have been a little lonely during the day.
We went to Bruges Friday and it was great because there was no rain. Saturday we explored downtown Brussels. We successfully ate too many frites, waffles, and chocolate. I could not have asked for a more rejuvenating and relaxing weekend.
Now, I am back in Grenoble. It has been really cold the past few days - I think the mountains have gotten a lot of snow. I might try to go skiing this weekend; although if I went I would be going alone because Ana and Carrie will both be out of town. I cannot decide if it is a smart idea to go alone. Also, I am dreadfully nervous that I will injure myself.
School is a little stressful - we have been assigned SOO MANY group projects! I cannot understand the fascination with group work at my school. Everything we do is in groups and I do not like it to be honest. Especially because I have a 20 page paper to write with three other people!!! How is the logical/fair/efficient?
Anyways, I will stop complaining, but it is definitely a challenge getting used to the educational system here.
I might try to go hiking this weekend as well - we will have to see how the weather is.
I booked my flight from Atlanta to Jackson - I CANNOT WAIT! yay for a summer at Moose Head. Well, there is nothing else too exciting going on in my life so I will try to write in the next few days.
Simply,
Kate
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
I love Grenoble.
This will be a short post, but I wanted to express my love for Grenoble. I have decided that I am truly blessed to be studying in such a perfect location in my opinion. It is not too big and not too small. After traveling quite a bit over the past couple of months I am always so thankful to return to Grenoble. Of course I love big cities like Paris, London, and Rome; however, I would not want to study there. It is too overwhelming and too much is going on for me to be there for an entire semester. Also, I feel relatively safe in Grenoble - of course there are your average teenage punks, but it is nothing frightening or scary like some of the gangs in other big cities.
On a positive note, I am feeling out of my "funk." Ever since getting my purse stolen, I have been feeling emotionally worn out. This changed yesterday evening and I feel much more like myself.
Elise and Jean Claude have a friend visiting right now. Her name is Katherine (the best name ever) and she is great. She is probably their age however she is very tall and skinny. She brought her dog so that has been entertaining to say the least. We had a lovely dinner last night and I learned that she is lactose intolerant and gluten intolerant! I feel that it would be very difficult to live in France with those intolerances because bread and cheese are staples here! I really like her though; she is so full of life and seems so happy even though she is older. It is refreshing to meet people like that.
Tomorrow I leave for BRUSSELS! YAHOOOO!! I am BEYOND excited! I am bringing Will with me and we are staying with Marianne. I cannot wait to see her and be back in Brussels - It is so strange to think that I lived there for such a significant part of my life. Will and I are planning to take a day trip to Bruges I believe. I cannot wait to be in a real house :)
I am actually sitting in the library right now in GEM. It is the first time that I have been in here. Last semester in Knoxville, I LIVED in the library, but here I have discovered my distaste to actually study :)
I am meeting with my group at noon to work on a presentation that we have on Monday. It is so different here because we have so many group projects and presentations. To be honest, I hate it! It is very difficult to coordinate schedules with everyone when we are all traveling and busy.
Bisous,
Kate
On a positive note, I am feeling out of my "funk." Ever since getting my purse stolen, I have been feeling emotionally worn out. This changed yesterday evening and I feel much more like myself.
Elise and Jean Claude have a friend visiting right now. Her name is Katherine (the best name ever) and she is great. She is probably their age however she is very tall and skinny. She brought her dog so that has been entertaining to say the least. We had a lovely dinner last night and I learned that she is lactose intolerant and gluten intolerant! I feel that it would be very difficult to live in France with those intolerances because bread and cheese are staples here! I really like her though; she is so full of life and seems so happy even though she is older. It is refreshing to meet people like that.
Tomorrow I leave for BRUSSELS! YAHOOOO!! I am BEYOND excited! I am bringing Will with me and we are staying with Marianne. I cannot wait to see her and be back in Brussels - It is so strange to think that I lived there for such a significant part of my life. Will and I are planning to take a day trip to Bruges I believe. I cannot wait to be in a real house :)
I am actually sitting in the library right now in GEM. It is the first time that I have been in here. Last semester in Knoxville, I LIVED in the library, but here I have discovered my distaste to actually study :)
I am meeting with my group at noon to work on a presentation that we have on Monday. It is so different here because we have so many group projects and presentations. To be honest, I hate it! It is very difficult to coordinate schedules with everyone when we are all traveling and busy.
Bisous,
Kate
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
ROMA
Ciao!
I arrived in Rome on Tuesday evening around 5:15. The first thing that I noticed about Italy - how I cannot understand or speak Italian! It was a little overwhelming trying to find the express train that took me from the airport to the center of Rome; however, I did find it successfully. Once at the Termini train station, I took the metro to meet Jasmine at the Le Panto stop. O how happy it made me to see her! I just love my GLS friends they are so wonderful. Jasmine and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner and then headed back to her apt. She lives with three other girls in a really nice spacious apartment. I am very jealous of the space - that is definitely one thing that I am looking forward to when I go back home.
Ben came over to have dinner with us! yay for Ben - he always makes me laugh because he is just all over the place and absolutely wonderful.
Wednesday morning, Jasmine and I did not get up super early. I was so excited to get out and see Rome during the day time. We left her apartment around ten and wandered around for a while. We then went to this little quaint pizza place for an early lunch because Jasmine had class in the afternoon. It was absolutely amaazzzinnggg. I really do wish that I could speak Italian.
After lunch, Jasmine went to class and I went exploring! I walked around everywhere and it was absolutely beautiful. I feel like a traversed Rome. It is rather unfortunate that my camera was stolen because I took so beautiful pictures that afternoon. My favorite part of the day was going to the Trevi Fountain (sp?) and getting a massiveeee gelato. I got one with nutella and caramel; I sat by the fountain and thoroughly enjoyed myself. While I am here in Europe, I am really trying to learn the art of relaxation and enjoyment. I felt like a master this afternoon at the Trevi Fountain.
Around 4 or so Ben got out of class so I met up with him to explore more! This is the part of my trip that I really wanted to make sure that I blogged about because it is definitely one of the coolest things that I have ever done in my life. So, Ben took me to this beautiful church (San Giovanni in Laterano) and it was so wonderful of course. Well, across the street was another really small church...and here was the coolest thing ever. When Constantine removed Christianity from the banned status, his mother Helena went to Israel and began to identity religious sites and artifacts. One of these was the steps that Jesus climbed after being scourged. These steps are now in that small church. People can come to this church to kneel up the entire staircase - you can only kneel, not walk. Ben and I decided to do it! It was so incredible and an extremely humbling experience.
We met up with Jasmine for dinner and went to a restaurant more near the center of Rome. It was delicious. Jasmine and I went to bed fairly early which was so great.
The next morning, I got up early to explore more - I went up to the Villa Borghese so walk around. It is a beautiful park in the northern part of the city that is absolutely HUGEEEE. I was there for a few hours and barely saw any of it! Ben then called me and we decided to meet at St. Peter's Basilica to go to the top! What a vieww!! I absolutely loved it so much.
We left to Naples that night - we took the train which was cool. I do not really want to go into detail about Naples because it was the least enjoyable part of my trip. The reason being that my purse was stolen from me by a man on a motorcycle. I am thankful that we were not hurt, Ben and Jasmine were so wonderful, and that my parents are so understanding of the situation.
Friday, I wanted to get away from Naples, so we went to Capri! What a beautiful island! I am happy we were able to go in the off-season because it was no crowded at all! yay! Capri was a great day!
Friday night was a really incredible experience as well - we went to a pizza place that Giovanni had recommended for dinner. We made a friend at the hostel, Juliet, so she came with us. She was from California and had been traveling alone for three months! She was awesome - well anyways we had to wait to be seated but it was totally worth it!
We were seating upstairs and I promise we were in a room full of Mafia wives - there were two tables to older Italian women dressed in fur coats, nice jewelry etc. There is noooo wayyy that anyone with that much money would be living in Naples if they were not in the Mafia. It is obvious - so that was cool and a little scary. However, my pizza was ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE. I literally ate every bite - I felt a little bit like I was in Eat Pray Love and the pizza was this massive thing, but I ate all if it and enjoyed every bite of it.
Saturday we walked down to the water which was cool, but honestly I think we were ready to go back to Rome. We changed our train tickets to go back earlier on Saturday and it was worth it. Saturday night we relaxed at Jasmine's apartment which was just lovely.
I flew back to France Sunday morning and o how I love France!! I was soo happy to be home in Grenoble. I missed the mountains and I love it here. So that was my Italian adventure - I hope to someday return to Italy and enjoy a vacation without any stolen property!
Bisous,
Kate
I arrived in Rome on Tuesday evening around 5:15. The first thing that I noticed about Italy - how I cannot understand or speak Italian! It was a little overwhelming trying to find the express train that took me from the airport to the center of Rome; however, I did find it successfully. Once at the Termini train station, I took the metro to meet Jasmine at the Le Panto stop. O how happy it made me to see her! I just love my GLS friends they are so wonderful. Jasmine and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner and then headed back to her apt. She lives with three other girls in a really nice spacious apartment. I am very jealous of the space - that is definitely one thing that I am looking forward to when I go back home.
Ben came over to have dinner with us! yay for Ben - he always makes me laugh because he is just all over the place and absolutely wonderful.
Wednesday morning, Jasmine and I did not get up super early. I was so excited to get out and see Rome during the day time. We left her apartment around ten and wandered around for a while. We then went to this little quaint pizza place for an early lunch because Jasmine had class in the afternoon. It was absolutely amaazzzinnggg. I really do wish that I could speak Italian.
After lunch, Jasmine went to class and I went exploring! I walked around everywhere and it was absolutely beautiful. I feel like a traversed Rome. It is rather unfortunate that my camera was stolen because I took so beautiful pictures that afternoon. My favorite part of the day was going to the Trevi Fountain (sp?) and getting a massiveeee gelato. I got one with nutella and caramel; I sat by the fountain and thoroughly enjoyed myself. While I am here in Europe, I am really trying to learn the art of relaxation and enjoyment. I felt like a master this afternoon at the Trevi Fountain.
Around 4 or so Ben got out of class so I met up with him to explore more! This is the part of my trip that I really wanted to make sure that I blogged about because it is definitely one of the coolest things that I have ever done in my life. So, Ben took me to this beautiful church (San Giovanni in Laterano) and it was so wonderful of course. Well, across the street was another really small church...and here was the coolest thing ever. When Constantine removed Christianity from the banned status, his mother Helena went to Israel and began to identity religious sites and artifacts. One of these was the steps that Jesus climbed after being scourged. These steps are now in that small church. People can come to this church to kneel up the entire staircase - you can only kneel, not walk. Ben and I decided to do it! It was so incredible and an extremely humbling experience.
We met up with Jasmine for dinner and went to a restaurant more near the center of Rome. It was delicious. Jasmine and I went to bed fairly early which was so great.
The next morning, I got up early to explore more - I went up to the Villa Borghese so walk around. It is a beautiful park in the northern part of the city that is absolutely HUGEEEE. I was there for a few hours and barely saw any of it! Ben then called me and we decided to meet at St. Peter's Basilica to go to the top! What a vieww!! I absolutely loved it so much.
We left to Naples that night - we took the train which was cool. I do not really want to go into detail about Naples because it was the least enjoyable part of my trip. The reason being that my purse was stolen from me by a man on a motorcycle. I am thankful that we were not hurt, Ben and Jasmine were so wonderful, and that my parents are so understanding of the situation.
Friday, I wanted to get away from Naples, so we went to Capri! What a beautiful island! I am happy we were able to go in the off-season because it was no crowded at all! yay! Capri was a great day!
Friday night was a really incredible experience as well - we went to a pizza place that Giovanni had recommended for dinner. We made a friend at the hostel, Juliet, so she came with us. She was from California and had been traveling alone for three months! She was awesome - well anyways we had to wait to be seated but it was totally worth it!
We were seating upstairs and I promise we were in a room full of Mafia wives - there were two tables to older Italian women dressed in fur coats, nice jewelry etc. There is noooo wayyy that anyone with that much money would be living in Naples if they were not in the Mafia. It is obvious - so that was cool and a little scary. However, my pizza was ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE. I literally ate every bite - I felt a little bit like I was in Eat Pray Love and the pizza was this massive thing, but I ate all if it and enjoyed every bite of it.
Saturday we walked down to the water which was cool, but honestly I think we were ready to go back to Rome. We changed our train tickets to go back earlier on Saturday and it was worth it. Saturday night we relaxed at Jasmine's apartment which was just lovely.
I flew back to France Sunday morning and o how I love France!! I was soo happy to be home in Grenoble. I missed the mountains and I love it here. So that was my Italian adventure - I hope to someday return to Italy and enjoy a vacation without any stolen property!
Bisous,
Kate
Monday, February 21, 2011
Aix-en-Provence!
Bonjour!
Sunday was the best day ever! We woke up early and Patrick had planned a surprise tour/day for us. We traveled by a private bus to... Les Baux de Provence! O MY GOODESS - absolutely stunning! It is a little village on a hill basically and it was so beautiful. The picture above is from here. We went up to the chateau/fort thing and got to explore the ruins! How amazing!
After, Patrick had a very special lunch planned for us - it was definitely one of the most amazing things that I have ever done! He took us to Mas de la Pyramide which is a farm now. It was once a quarry during Roman times. A man of 86 years, Lolo, lives there. His house is carved into to rock and ruin. The property has been in his family for over 400 years!! Well basically, you can go and have lunch with him. O my goodness what an INCREDIBLE meal. This was experiencing TRUE Provence! Lolo's old friends were there as well. We dined in this cave thing and the food was absolutely delicious - it consisted of bread (of course), olive omelettes, pasta with mushrooms, sausage, roasted chicken, salad, cheese and fruit. The food never stopped coming! Also, Lolo has a field of olive trees and actually makes his own olive oil. That experience will forever be in my memory and I am so thankful for it.
Okay, well Provence was amazing. I hope to travel back one day :)
O what a weekend! I went to Aix-en-Provence with my program and had an absolutely incredible time! We left Grenoble by train Friday around noon and arrived in Aix around 3:30 pm. We had to take two different trains because there is no direct TGV to Aix. Upon arriving, we went to our hotel to check in and put our bags away. We stayed at a nice hotel right in the center of the town. Ana and I were roommates which was really fun! I am so thankful that we both travel really well together.
Ana and I decided to go explore Aix on Friday afternoon. It was warmer than Grenoble and a beautiful afternoon. Aix is a small, quaint, and provencal town! There are fountains everywhere and it is definitely a little bit more upscale than Grenoble. It is small enough to walk around everywhere and there is no need for a metro or tram. We saw so many wonderful little shops and monuments while exploring. That night, we went to a Thai restaurant with everyone from our program. It was fun! I feel like the food was overpriced for the amount they gave us, but whatever.
Ana's friend from CSU came by our room after to say hi and Ana went to hang out with her for a bit. We went to bed early and got up around 8 to go to Marseille with our group. O Marseille - it reminded me a little bit of Naples. It was not as sketchy or dirty, but Marseille is not a pretty city. It was beautiful seeing the water and the port though. We walked up to this church on the hill and the view was incredible. Saturday was a tough day because I think we were all getting on each other's nerves and patience was running a bit low.
We had Saturday to do whatever we wanted which was completely necessary so that we all could cool off and breathe a bit. Ana and I watched some French tv in our room for a while and then went out into town to find something to get for takeout. O goodness - we found the besttt Greek Kebab place! O wow - it was delicious.
After, Patrick had a very special lunch planned for us - it was definitely one of the most amazing things that I have ever done! He took us to Mas de la Pyramide which is a farm now. It was once a quarry during Roman times. A man of 86 years, Lolo, lives there. His house is carved into to rock and ruin. The property has been in his family for over 400 years!! Well basically, you can go and have lunch with him. O my goodness what an INCREDIBLE meal. This was experiencing TRUE Provence! Lolo's old friends were there as well. We dined in this cave thing and the food was absolutely delicious - it consisted of bread (of course), olive omelettes, pasta with mushrooms, sausage, roasted chicken, salad, cheese and fruit. The food never stopped coming! Also, Lolo has a field of olive trees and actually makes his own olive oil. That experience will forever be in my memory and I am so thankful for it.
Okay, well Provence was amazing. I hope to travel back one day :)
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Paris Continued!
Hello again!
Sorry for cutting my last blog short - I was really not in my mood to finish writing about Paris and Rome. I will try again right now. Where did I leave off? David left Sunday morning, so I walked over the le Musee d'Orsay to enjoy some art! Luckily, the museum is free every first Sunday of the month - yahoO! O my goodness I absolutely adored the museum. It is the museum with a lot of Van Gogh and impressionist and post-impressionist paintings. I think that this time period of art is definitely one of my favorites. It was so cool to be able to recognize a lot of the artists because of other art that I have seen in Europe like in Grenoble and London. I actually stayed in the museum for a quite a long time.
After that, I texted Lilly and we decided to go the the Chinese New Year Parades in Paris! Cool right? and random! It was so wonderful to see Lilly. It made me smile to no end and the parades were really amazing. There were hundreds and hundred of people there too! Of course the costumes of the people in the parade were incredible and I loved seeing the dancing dragons and dancers.
After, I headed back to Jean-Luc's house because I was so exhausted from waking up early and walking around all day. I actually took a two hour nap when I got back to their house! Sunday night's dinner was DELICIOUS. I guess it is a tradition in their home for Jean-Luc to make homemade pizza every Sunday and boy was it so soo good. He told me that he goes to the actual mill to get the wheat for the dough! How crazy is that?! The crust was a thick wheat crust and basically melted in my mouth; I loved it.
Monday, I went back into Paris and explored by myself! It was grand! For lunch, I went to a very famous Falafel stand on Rue de Rosiers which is basically the only Jewish area really left in Paris. My falafel was easily one of the best things that I have every eaten in my life. It was in a pita pocket with cabbage, cooked eggplant, tomatoes, and some delicious creamy sauce. I think I could have eaten like ten of them.
Monday afternoon I decided to go to Versailles! It was super easy getting there because the RER goes directly there. I had been to Versailles a long time ago with Sam Rosen's family so it was really cool to go back and see it. How beautiful it was! The palace was closed because it was Monday, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself walking around the gardens which span for miles it seems. I was also very lucky because it was sunny all day in Paris on Monday!
I left Tuesday for Rome - I was a little reluctant to leave because I had such an incredible time in Paris and with Jean luc's family. I wanted to stay forever! However, I had never been to Rome at that point so I jetted off the Italia!!
Sorry for cutting my last blog short - I was really not in my mood to finish writing about Paris and Rome. I will try again right now. Where did I leave off? David left Sunday morning, so I walked over the le Musee d'Orsay to enjoy some art! Luckily, the museum is free every first Sunday of the month - yahoO! O my goodness I absolutely adored the museum. It is the museum with a lot of Van Gogh and impressionist and post-impressionist paintings. I think that this time period of art is definitely one of my favorites. It was so cool to be able to recognize a lot of the artists because of other art that I have seen in Europe like in Grenoble and London. I actually stayed in the museum for a quite a long time.
After that, I texted Lilly and we decided to go the the Chinese New Year Parades in Paris! Cool right? and random! It was so wonderful to see Lilly. It made me smile to no end and the parades were really amazing. There were hundreds and hundred of people there too! Of course the costumes of the people in the parade were incredible and I loved seeing the dancing dragons and dancers.
After, I headed back to Jean-Luc's house because I was so exhausted from waking up early and walking around all day. I actually took a two hour nap when I got back to their house! Sunday night's dinner was DELICIOUS. I guess it is a tradition in their home for Jean-Luc to make homemade pizza every Sunday and boy was it so soo good. He told me that he goes to the actual mill to get the wheat for the dough! How crazy is that?! The crust was a thick wheat crust and basically melted in my mouth; I loved it.
Monday, I went back into Paris and explored by myself! It was grand! For lunch, I went to a very famous Falafel stand on Rue de Rosiers which is basically the only Jewish area really left in Paris. My falafel was easily one of the best things that I have every eaten in my life. It was in a pita pocket with cabbage, cooked eggplant, tomatoes, and some delicious creamy sauce. I think I could have eaten like ten of them.
Monday afternoon I decided to go to Versailles! It was super easy getting there because the RER goes directly there. I had been to Versailles a long time ago with Sam Rosen's family so it was really cool to go back and see it. How beautiful it was! The palace was closed because it was Monday, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself walking around the gardens which span for miles it seems. I was also very lucky because it was sunny all day in Paris on Monday!
I left Tuesday for Rome - I was a little reluctant to leave because I had such an incredible time in Paris and with Jean luc's family. I wanted to stay forever! However, I had never been to Rome at that point so I jetted off the Italia!!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Paris and Rome!
Hello again!
Wow it has been a long time since I last right in my blog. I sincerely apologize - I really want to actually keep up with this blog so that I may look back on it when it is all over and remember what I did!
So I honestly do not know what I lastly wrote about. I guess I will start with my trip to Paris! I left two Fridays ago - I took the TGV from Grenoble to Paris Gare Lyon. Because I am under the age of 25, I get a special card called the 12-25 card that allows for me to get discounts on trains in France. Well, lucky me! I was able to go first class to Paris! I felt like a brat but I really loved it. So I arrived in Paris around 2 or so. David was supposed to meet me around 3 but we had a few problems coordinating our rendez-vous. Needless to say, we met up near the Louvre. It was so wonderful to see a familiar face! I have talked about this with other GLS students before, but it is so nice to not have to make an effort with my friends from home. I do not have to try to impress or entertain so that is why I love visiting old friends from home. Anyways, Jean-Luc picked us up from the roundabout near the Louvre. I had never met him before and I do not know what I was expecting to be honest - but he surprised me! He is very tall - like 6'4 or something! Also, from his e-mails, it seemed that he spoke perfect English but upon meeting him, I heard a very strong French accent. However, I really loved it! David and I were so happy to be picked up from Paris by him; it made everything a lot easier.
Jean-Luc lives with his wife, Marie, and three children (Agathe, Felix, and to be honest I cannot remember the other son's name! That is terrrible). They live in Gif-Sur-Yvette in the South of the city. They live in a beautiful home in the countryside! Oh my goodness I fell in love with their home!! It was so incredible to be in a spacious place with a lot of the things that I am used to at home - fast internet, a big bed, a modern shower!! Europe has definitely taught me to appreciate the things that I have at home in the US! Jean-Luc's family was so invited and incredible. I could not be more blessed to have been able to stay with them. I think David really enjoyed it too even though he does not speak hardly any French. Marie and Jean-Luc cooked us a typical and delicious French meal on Friday. Jean Luc has an INCREDIBLE wine cellar!! O wow! I was so spoiled. I tried a Bourgogne (sp?) wine for the first time and it was so wonderful, not to mention 10 years old! Of course we ate a lot of cheese and then a tartine (an upside down apple tart) for dessert. It was so amazing.
The next morning, David and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast with Jean Luc and Marie. Jean Luc went to their bakery and bought us FRESH pain au chocolat! They were still warm!! Easily the best thing I have ever eaten - David loved it too. We then went with Jean Luc to the RER station so that we could take the train to Paris. It was really easy to get on and figure out. When we got to Paris, we went to Sacre Coeur in the Montmantre part of Paris. Sacre Coeur is on a hill and it gave us a beautiful view of Paris!! Honestly, we basically just walked around all of Paris. It was so wonderful to see the city and I really fell in love with it. It is so cliche to say that I love Paris, but after last weekend it is impossible not to say it! Paris is one of my favorite cities now. David and I enjoyed a peaceful lunch at a typical French restaurant. He got a croque monsieur and I had a beautiful smoke salmon salad. It was soo delicious. We continued to walk around, take pictures, and enjoy the city. We were able to meet up with Megan and Jody too. It was nice to see them.
Saturday night David and I found a delicious stir fry restaurant!! YAY! As much as I love French food, it was a really nice change. We both has stir fried noodles with vegetables and meat. It was extremely yummy. By the time we got back to Jean Luc's it was about one in the morning and we were exhausted.
The next morning we got up early again and went to see the Eiffel Tower. David had to leave that morning, so it was a nice way to send him off.
Okay I am going to have to continue this later!! Blogging is tough work ;)
Wow it has been a long time since I last right in my blog. I sincerely apologize - I really want to actually keep up with this blog so that I may look back on it when it is all over and remember what I did!
So I honestly do not know what I lastly wrote about. I guess I will start with my trip to Paris! I left two Fridays ago - I took the TGV from Grenoble to Paris Gare Lyon. Because I am under the age of 25, I get a special card called the 12-25 card that allows for me to get discounts on trains in France. Well, lucky me! I was able to go first class to Paris! I felt like a brat but I really loved it. So I arrived in Paris around 2 or so. David was supposed to meet me around 3 but we had a few problems coordinating our rendez-vous. Needless to say, we met up near the Louvre. It was so wonderful to see a familiar face! I have talked about this with other GLS students before, but it is so nice to not have to make an effort with my friends from home. I do not have to try to impress or entertain so that is why I love visiting old friends from home. Anyways, Jean-Luc picked us up from the roundabout near the Louvre. I had never met him before and I do not know what I was expecting to be honest - but he surprised me! He is very tall - like 6'4 or something! Also, from his e-mails, it seemed that he spoke perfect English but upon meeting him, I heard a very strong French accent. However, I really loved it! David and I were so happy to be picked up from Paris by him; it made everything a lot easier.
Jean-Luc lives with his wife, Marie, and three children (Agathe, Felix, and to be honest I cannot remember the other son's name! That is terrrible). They live in Gif-Sur-Yvette in the South of the city. They live in a beautiful home in the countryside! Oh my goodness I fell in love with their home!! It was so incredible to be in a spacious place with a lot of the things that I am used to at home - fast internet, a big bed, a modern shower!! Europe has definitely taught me to appreciate the things that I have at home in the US! Jean-Luc's family was so invited and incredible. I could not be more blessed to have been able to stay with them. I think David really enjoyed it too even though he does not speak hardly any French. Marie and Jean-Luc cooked us a typical and delicious French meal on Friday. Jean Luc has an INCREDIBLE wine cellar!! O wow! I was so spoiled. I tried a Bourgogne (sp?) wine for the first time and it was so wonderful, not to mention 10 years old! Of course we ate a lot of cheese and then a tartine (an upside down apple tart) for dessert. It was so amazing.
The next morning, David and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast with Jean Luc and Marie. Jean Luc went to their bakery and bought us FRESH pain au chocolat! They were still warm!! Easily the best thing I have ever eaten - David loved it too. We then went with Jean Luc to the RER station so that we could take the train to Paris. It was really easy to get on and figure out. When we got to Paris, we went to Sacre Coeur in the Montmantre part of Paris. Sacre Coeur is on a hill and it gave us a beautiful view of Paris!! Honestly, we basically just walked around all of Paris. It was so wonderful to see the city and I really fell in love with it. It is so cliche to say that I love Paris, but after last weekend it is impossible not to say it! Paris is one of my favorite cities now. David and I enjoyed a peaceful lunch at a typical French restaurant. He got a croque monsieur and I had a beautiful smoke salmon salad. It was soo delicious. We continued to walk around, take pictures, and enjoy the city. We were able to meet up with Megan and Jody too. It was nice to see them.
Saturday night David and I found a delicious stir fry restaurant!! YAY! As much as I love French food, it was a really nice change. We both has stir fried noodles with vegetables and meat. It was extremely yummy. By the time we got back to Jean Luc's it was about one in the morning and we were exhausted.
The next morning we got up early again and went to see the Eiffel Tower. David had to leave that morning, so it was a nice way to send him off.
Okay I am going to have to continue this later!! Blogging is tough work ;)
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Ana's Birthday
Hello
I apologize for not blogging the past couple of days. I guess since I have been feeling under the weather I did not have any thing exciting to say! Also, I wrote a post the other day that I ended up not publishing. The reason being that I was just mad at France and it was a little negative so I decided it would be best not to publish it :) Life is what you make of it right?
Well yesterday was Ana's 21st birthday! HURRAY! I really wanted to make her day special because we are the only family she has over here in France. Her boyfriend Peter sent her flowers though! It was really sweet and I think it made her incredibly happy. I can only imagine what it would be like to receive flowers all the way in France from my boyfriend!
I wanted to have a dinner party for Ana and cook! I sincerely miss cooking! It is such a joy in my life and unfortunately I cannot do it here. Don't get me wrong - I am so thankful and blessed to have my host mom who makes incredible meals all of the time, but it would be nice to simply make and eat what I want in that moment. So, I noticed that the girls have a WOK at their apartment!! YAY FOR STIR-FRY!! Over the past three days I started buying different food necessities for some delicious stir-fry and it all came together last night. It was me, Ana, Maria, Carrie, Anna Cat, Will, and Aaron. What a perfect little celebration we had! I made asian noodles to go along with the vegetable and chicken stir-fry, Aaron brought hummus and chips for an appetizer, Will brought the Orangina, I steamed potstickers, and Carrie and I bought INCREDIBLE little tarts from Monoprix. The evening was a success and it was a lot of fun. We played this really funny game of telephone pictionary - it is kind of hard to describe, but it was INCREDIBLY FUNNY! I will try to describe it when I am more in a writing mood.
As for my foot, it is okay. The anti-inflammatories really help so I really don't feel much during the day. I hope that all of my traveling does not make it worse! I leave for Paris tomorrow! YAHOO!
cannot wait - I will try to write later if I have time.
Bisous,
Kate
I apologize for not blogging the past couple of days. I guess since I have been feeling under the weather I did not have any thing exciting to say! Also, I wrote a post the other day that I ended up not publishing. The reason being that I was just mad at France and it was a little negative so I decided it would be best not to publish it :) Life is what you make of it right?
Well yesterday was Ana's 21st birthday! HURRAY! I really wanted to make her day special because we are the only family she has over here in France. Her boyfriend Peter sent her flowers though! It was really sweet and I think it made her incredibly happy. I can only imagine what it would be like to receive flowers all the way in France from my boyfriend!
I wanted to have a dinner party for Ana and cook! I sincerely miss cooking! It is such a joy in my life and unfortunately I cannot do it here. Don't get me wrong - I am so thankful and blessed to have my host mom who makes incredible meals all of the time, but it would be nice to simply make and eat what I want in that moment. So, I noticed that the girls have a WOK at their apartment!! YAY FOR STIR-FRY!! Over the past three days I started buying different food necessities for some delicious stir-fry and it all came together last night. It was me, Ana, Maria, Carrie, Anna Cat, Will, and Aaron. What a perfect little celebration we had! I made asian noodles to go along with the vegetable and chicken stir-fry, Aaron brought hummus and chips for an appetizer, Will brought the Orangina, I steamed potstickers, and Carrie and I bought INCREDIBLE little tarts from Monoprix. The evening was a success and it was a lot of fun. We played this really funny game of telephone pictionary - it is kind of hard to describe, but it was INCREDIBLY FUNNY! I will try to describe it when I am more in a writing mood.
As for my foot, it is okay. The anti-inflammatories really help so I really don't feel much during the day. I hope that all of my traveling does not make it worse! I leave for Paris tomorrow! YAHOO!
cannot wait - I will try to write later if I have time.
Bisous,
Kate
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Mieux
Bonsoir!
I am writing you from my bed as usual. Luckily I am feeling a lot better than I felt on Friday! That was horrible and I am so thankful to be feeling better. I am still worried about my foot, but I am trying not to think about it too much.
It was a gray day here in Grenoble - the perfect weather for a lazy Sunday. I went over to the girls' apartment for most of the afternoon. Ana and I found a great apartment to rent for when we go to Amsterdam. I am so excited because Liz Tuthill is going to come and meet us there!! I have not seen her in like seven years! yayyy!! It will be so wonderful to reconnect with an old friend.
This Friday I will be in Paris! (I am keeping my fingers crossed and praying for my health). David is meeting me there and we will be staying with family friends. I am sincerely looking forward to it. We will hopefully be able to see Lilly (an MH cabin girl) as well. She is studying in Paris and I would like nothing more than to give her a big hug.
I will be in Paris until Tuesday and from Paris I am flying to Rome to visit Ben and Jasmine! I CANNOT WAIT FOR ITALY. I love Italyy! It is such an incredible and beautiful country. Also, I want PIZZA.
This weekend was probably really good for me - I got to relax, read, and simply rest. Obviously, I needed it. It is hard to remember to slow down sometimes. I miss my family though a lot and I wish I could hug Crissy/mom/dad/jack right now. I cannot wait to see them again. I love Europe, but it makes me so thankful and appreciative of everything that I have waiting for me when I return.
I have a lot of class this week :( My day tomorrow starts at 8 and goes until 4 I believe.. long day!
xoxox
K
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Bored
Today is the first day I can honestly say that I am bored - I am sick too so there is no leaving my apartment today. It was soo random, but yesterday I was out shopping with Ana, Carrie, and Anna Cat and I suddenly felt very ill. I told the girls that I needed to go home and preceded to somehow make it home. My host family wasn't even home so I curled up in my bed; I am pretty sure I had some kind of virus or something. I definitely had a fever.
I was supposed to go snowshoeing today, but I didn't because of my illness and my foot still really hurts :(
I do not know what I will do today. Maybe some homework or something.
I was supposed to go snowshoeing today, but I didn't because of my illness and my foot still really hurts :(
I do not know what I will do today. Maybe some homework or something.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Vendredi
Salut!
I am sorry that my post yesterday was so incredibly random and short but it seriously made my day when I got that e-mail from Allie. I get to spend the summer with her and Dennis again! yay! I am really looking forward to MH. The only wish I would have is that Crissy could come back :(
Well, class yesterday was EXCRUCIATINGLY boring and long. I had to learn to a professor talk AT me for three solid hours about the history of the EU. It was absolutely horrendous.
Unfortunately, I think I did something not so good to my foot. There is a little bump/bruise on the top of it and it hurts when I bend my foot. Of course, I am naturally a worrier so I am nervous that I did something serious. Hopefully not right? It is a downfall of Europe that I would have no idea what to do if I did something serious to it. I do not want to have to go to the doctor here! I am praying that it goes away in a few days. It doesn't help that I will be going snowshoeing tomorrow :( ahhhh
Last night we had our weekly rendez-vous with Patrick. It was fun - we tried foie gras on toast, some dessert wine, and these great cracker things with powdered sugar on them. I have decided that I am not partial to foie gras - no merci!
I am going shopping today with Ana, AC, and Carrie - I am excited. I am going to try to wear shoes that do not hurt my foot too much. O exciting newS - I have been talking to Liz Tuthill about meeting up while we both are in Europe. She is studying in Denmark; anyways, I think she might come to The Black Keys concert with me, Ana, and Betsy! How crazy would that be?! I would love to see her!
I am going to go eat breakfast.
Bisous,
Kate
I am sorry that my post yesterday was so incredibly random and short but it seriously made my day when I got that e-mail from Allie. I get to spend the summer with her and Dennis again! yay! I am really looking forward to MH. The only wish I would have is that Crissy could come back :(
Well, class yesterday was EXCRUCIATINGLY boring and long. I had to learn to a professor talk AT me for three solid hours about the history of the EU. It was absolutely horrendous.
Unfortunately, I think I did something not so good to my foot. There is a little bump/bruise on the top of it and it hurts when I bend my foot. Of course, I am naturally a worrier so I am nervous that I did something serious. Hopefully not right? It is a downfall of Europe that I would have no idea what to do if I did something serious to it. I do not want to have to go to the doctor here! I am praying that it goes away in a few days. It doesn't help that I will be going snowshoeing tomorrow :( ahhhh
Last night we had our weekly rendez-vous with Patrick. It was fun - we tried foie gras on toast, some dessert wine, and these great cracker things with powdered sugar on them. I have decided that I am not partial to foie gras - no merci!
I am going shopping today with Ana, AC, and Carrie - I am excited. I am going to try to wear shoes that do not hurt my foot too much. O exciting newS - I have been talking to Liz Tuthill about meeting up while we both are in Europe. She is studying in Denmark; anyways, I think she might come to The Black Keys concert with me, Ana, and Betsy! How crazy would that be?! I would love to see her!
I am going to go eat breakfast.
Bisous,
Kate
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
yay!
This post will be extremely short, but I got an e-mail from Allie (from MH) and SHE IS GOING BACK TO MH THIS SUMMER!!!
I am the happpiest girl alive. In French news, I am going snowshoeing this weekend. I wish I could film it because I am sure that it will be quite entertaining to watch me trudge through snow with raquettes on my feet! :)
I am the happpiest girl alive. In French news, I am going snowshoeing this weekend. I wish I could film it because I am sure that it will be quite entertaining to watch me trudge through snow with raquettes on my feet! :)
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Mentos
I love Mentos - I do not know why I am telling you this, but I am eating a roll of them and felt the need to share my love for them,
Well, what is new? I had my first Ethics class yesterday and I am sincerely looking forward to the class. It reminds me of my Economics 300 class from last year and I absolutely loved it so yay! We did our group presentations today - I am in a group with three guys that couldn't care less about the project. It is rather sad and I found myself doing most of it. I sincerely dislike group projects.
I have my French class in about two hours from 4:45 to 8:00! O la - c'est trop longue mais c'est la vie! After, I am going to the girls' apartment before Cafe Bayard and Irish music night. I love Tuesdays simply for that reason. I think Anna Cat and I might try to go snowshoeing this weekend! I want to get up into the mountains. I miss them dearly. I hope to be able to Skype with Crissy later too - I want to talk to her!
Bisous,
Kate
Well, what is new? I had my first Ethics class yesterday and I am sincerely looking forward to the class. It reminds me of my Economics 300 class from last year and I absolutely loved it so yay! We did our group presentations today - I am in a group with three guys that couldn't care less about the project. It is rather sad and I found myself doing most of it. I sincerely dislike group projects.
I have my French class in about two hours from 4:45 to 8:00! O la - c'est trop longue mais c'est la vie! After, I am going to the girls' apartment before Cafe Bayard and Irish music night. I love Tuesdays simply for that reason. I think Anna Cat and I might try to go snowshoeing this weekend! I want to get up into the mountains. I miss them dearly. I hope to be able to Skype with Crissy later too - I want to talk to her!
Bisous,
Kate
Monday, January 24, 2011
LONDON
'ELLO!
Wow - I LOVE LONDON!!! Ana and I as I mentioned in a previous blog decided to take a rather last minute trip to London this past weekend and it was absolutely fabulous!
We had to take a bus from the Gare Routiere here in Grenoble to the Grenoble airport at 7h00 on Friday. It was rather early and very dark outside. The Grenoble airport is a joke - it is soooo small and basically in the middle of nowhere. It is rather annoying too that the airport is called The Grenoble Airport, yet it is a good 45 minutes from the city. I guess that is France for you. We flew on the discount airline, easyjet from Grenoble to the Gatwick airport which is right outside of London. We took an express train from the Gatwick airport to the London Victoria station.
Upon arriving, we ventured out to find our hostel. It was located near Holland Park which is an extremely lovely part of London. It is not in the downtown area, but near Hyde Park. I really love the architecture of the townhouses/apartments of London. The hostel was fairly nice - it was clean so that was good. After we dropped our backpacks off at the hostel (by the way - traveling by backpack is the way to go!) we were really hungry so we took the Tube into London. The Tube was actually kind of difficult to use! We thought that London would be so easy because the whole English thing, but it took a little bit to figure out which line to take into the city.
One goal I had for London was SUSHI. Don't get me wrong, I am so thankful for wonderful French cuisine 24/7 in Grenoble, but I was looking forward to a little change. We found a really cool sushi restaurant where the sushi came around on a conveyor belt and you could just grab whatever you wanted. The color of the plates coordinated with a price. O ya, the English Pound OWNED ME. I hate the value of the US dollar - it was a little depressing how much money I spent this weekend. Anyways, after sushi, we went to visit Christina! It was sooo great to see her and some of the other GLSers in London. They live in such an amazing part too - right near the Museum of London. I think that they are having a wonderful time so it was great to see that.
After we went into that museum and wondered around for a while. I am so happy to have Ana in my program because we seem to mesh really well in terms of traveling. We like to do the same things, we like the same food, and we have fun together. We went to dinner on Friday evening with Ana's mom's best friend, Brian Hollywood. He is Irish and he works as a producer for BBC! How cool right?! He was genuinely one of the nicest people I have ever met in my life! He took us to an incredible Japanese restaurant near Tragalgar Square. It was amazing and he was kind enough to pay for our meal. We then walked along the Thames River which was so beautiful. It was a little cold, but it was totally bearable. Around 10, we went to a little cafe to enjoy hot tea and a delicious dessert. I had a fudge brownie with vanilla ice cream and it was HEAVENLY.
Saturday morning, Ana and I woke up and went exploring! Unfortunately, some of the Tube lines were not running so we had to change lines a lot of times to get to the Tower of London. We then traversed from the East side of the city to the West. We stopped in cathedrals, markets, and museums. It was a very successful day. OMG I forgot to tell you, I SAW CAMERON DIAZ AND ALEX RODRIGUEZ at the restaurant that we went to for lunch. It is called The Wolseley - soooo beautiful! Ana went there with her mom last summer and she kept raving about it so we decided to go and wait for a table. Naturally, it is best to make reservations, but we were determined to eat there so we waited for llike an hour and a half. Well... we were having a coffee in the little tea room and I looked through the glass and there was Cameron Diaz! She was waiting by the door! I freaked outtt so Ana and I moved into the same room and her and stood there for about ten minutes watching her. She is so beautiful and we did not know who she was waiting on... and then walked up Alex R. Soo cooL! It was really neat to see. Anyways, lunch was probably the best and most expensive thing of my life, but it was totally worth it!
Saturday evening we bought food at the grocery store and used the hostel's kitchen to make ourselves dinner. It was fun!
This is a long post.. I promise to finish it later!
bisous,
Kate
Wow - I LOVE LONDON!!! Ana and I as I mentioned in a previous blog decided to take a rather last minute trip to London this past weekend and it was absolutely fabulous!
We had to take a bus from the Gare Routiere here in Grenoble to the Grenoble airport at 7h00 on Friday. It was rather early and very dark outside. The Grenoble airport is a joke - it is soooo small and basically in the middle of nowhere. It is rather annoying too that the airport is called The Grenoble Airport, yet it is a good 45 minutes from the city. I guess that is France for you. We flew on the discount airline, easyjet from Grenoble to the Gatwick airport which is right outside of London. We took an express train from the Gatwick airport to the London Victoria station.
Upon arriving, we ventured out to find our hostel. It was located near Holland Park which is an extremely lovely part of London. It is not in the downtown area, but near Hyde Park. I really love the architecture of the townhouses/apartments of London. The hostel was fairly nice - it was clean so that was good. After we dropped our backpacks off at the hostel (by the way - traveling by backpack is the way to go!) we were really hungry so we took the Tube into London. The Tube was actually kind of difficult to use! We thought that London would be so easy because the whole English thing, but it took a little bit to figure out which line to take into the city.
One goal I had for London was SUSHI. Don't get me wrong, I am so thankful for wonderful French cuisine 24/7 in Grenoble, but I was looking forward to a little change. We found a really cool sushi restaurant where the sushi came around on a conveyor belt and you could just grab whatever you wanted. The color of the plates coordinated with a price. O ya, the English Pound OWNED ME. I hate the value of the US dollar - it was a little depressing how much money I spent this weekend. Anyways, after sushi, we went to visit Christina! It was sooo great to see her and some of the other GLSers in London. They live in such an amazing part too - right near the Museum of London. I think that they are having a wonderful time so it was great to see that.
After we went into that museum and wondered around for a while. I am so happy to have Ana in my program because we seem to mesh really well in terms of traveling. We like to do the same things, we like the same food, and we have fun together. We went to dinner on Friday evening with Ana's mom's best friend, Brian Hollywood. He is Irish and he works as a producer for BBC! How cool right?! He was genuinely one of the nicest people I have ever met in my life! He took us to an incredible Japanese restaurant near Tragalgar Square. It was amazing and he was kind enough to pay for our meal. We then walked along the Thames River which was so beautiful. It was a little cold, but it was totally bearable. Around 10, we went to a little cafe to enjoy hot tea and a delicious dessert. I had a fudge brownie with vanilla ice cream and it was HEAVENLY.
Saturday morning, Ana and I woke up and went exploring! Unfortunately, some of the Tube lines were not running so we had to change lines a lot of times to get to the Tower of London. We then traversed from the East side of the city to the West. We stopped in cathedrals, markets, and museums. It was a very successful day. OMG I forgot to tell you, I SAW CAMERON DIAZ AND ALEX RODRIGUEZ at the restaurant that we went to for lunch. It is called The Wolseley - soooo beautiful! Ana went there with her mom last summer and she kept raving about it so we decided to go and wait for a table. Naturally, it is best to make reservations, but we were determined to eat there so we waited for llike an hour and a half. Well... we were having a coffee in the little tea room and I looked through the glass and there was Cameron Diaz! She was waiting by the door! I freaked outtt so Ana and I moved into the same room and her and stood there for about ten minutes watching her. She is so beautiful and we did not know who she was waiting on... and then walked up Alex R. Soo cooL! It was really neat to see. Anyways, lunch was probably the best and most expensive thing of my life, but it was totally worth it!
Saturday evening we bought food at the grocery store and used the hostel's kitchen to make ourselves dinner. It was fun!
This is a long post.. I promise to finish it later!
bisous,
Kate
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Pas d'ecole!
Salut!
I did not have class today! YAHOOO! last night I went to Cafe Bayard with Aaron, Hugo, Anna Cat, Ana, Patrick, Kelsey, Will, and Sam for the weekly Irish music. It was so great! Anna Cat and I danced around with some young people... I felt like an idiot because I have realized that I have no rhythmic capabilities with my feet, but it was so fun!
Today it was my goal to find Panko breadcrumbs in France.. probably not my best idea. I had plans to fry fish tonight for a little dinner party at the girls' apartment, but I searched and searched to no avail. So I am not quite sure what is going to happen tonight for dinner. Sam is making a traditional potato dish of this region and we are going to have une galette de roi (a king cake) as well. It should be fun. I thought that it was going to be a beautiful/warmer day, but it is definitely COLD. The sun is out, but the wind is blowing!
I am feeling rather sleepy... I probably should try to take a nap.
bisous,
Kate
I did not have class today! YAHOOO! last night I went to Cafe Bayard with Aaron, Hugo, Anna Cat, Ana, Patrick, Kelsey, Will, and Sam for the weekly Irish music. It was so great! Anna Cat and I danced around with some young people... I felt like an idiot because I have realized that I have no rhythmic capabilities with my feet, but it was so fun!
Today it was my goal to find Panko breadcrumbs in France.. probably not my best idea. I had plans to fry fish tonight for a little dinner party at the girls' apartment, but I searched and searched to no avail. So I am not quite sure what is going to happen tonight for dinner. Sam is making a traditional potato dish of this region and we are going to have une galette de roi (a king cake) as well. It should be fun. I thought that it was going to be a beautiful/warmer day, but it is definitely COLD. The sun is out, but the wind is blowing!
I am feeling rather sleepy... I probably should try to take a nap.
bisous,
Kate
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
School
Salut!
Sorry for not writing yesterday – I was very busy. I had my first day of class yesterday. Ahhhh – I was completely dreading it. I have be in lala land here in Europe and I almost forgot that I came here to actually attend school. I have one class, Innovation and Product Development for three hours. My schedule is a little weird because it changes from week to week and the classes are in block schedules. It is interesting, but I have a hard time focusing for three hours. We only get a fifteen minute break in between. I really like my professor thought – she is from Holland and actually knew the town that my dad is from so that was cool! We have a group project already – we must take a product and design a new and better package for it. I am in a group with three very immature boys to be honest. I am afraid I will end up doing the entire project, which would be rather unfortunate. I hate group work! I think we finally decided on doing pasta sauce so we will see.
I BOOKED MY FLIGHT TO ROME! I am so excited. I am going to go to Paris to visit Jean-Luc on February 4th and then fly to Rome on February 8th. Then on Thursday night, Jasmine, Ben, and I are going to go to Naples, Italy for two nights. I booked a hostel and our mission of the trip is to eat THE BEST PIZZA IN THE WORLD. I am so excited. Also in traveling news, Ana and I spontaneously decided to go to London this weekend! We booked our flights last night. YAY! I am spending way too much money, but I do not really care… it is important to live life and have fun.
I had a three hour class this morning on the history of the European Union…shoot me. I believe that the information is extremely important, but it was soooo boring. My professor literally lectured us on the history of the EU for three hours. It was awful – not to mention at 8 in the morning.
I have my first French class this afternoon. I am looking forward to it. I have decided to start studying French on my own here. There are a ton of French students in the school, but they are not exchange students so they have no reason to make friends with me, an exchange student. We will see what happens. I was invited to a housewarming party by a German girl in my exchange program and I am very excited to go on Thursday. I love German people – they are wonderful.
Tonight I am going to Café Bayard to enjoy the weekly musical Irish group. We are going to try to get there before ten so that we can sit in the same room as the musical group.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Lyon
Today was my first real travel day since arriving in Grenoble and it was FABULOUS! Anna Cat and I went to Lyon for the day - I felt such excitement to travel. I bought a train ticket yesterday after orientation and AC and I took the 8:30 train to Lyon. We arrived around ten and were extremely overwhelmed when we walked out the the train station. Lyon is a lot bigger than Grenoble! They have trams, metros, and buses. It was so confusing. Luckily, we managed to walk our way in the general direction of le Vieux Lyon! C'etait incroyable! We walked up this massive hill to get to the Basilique which is a famous and absolutely breath-takingly beautiful cathedral on the top of the hill. It was so amazing. It really made me think about the time and effort that was put into that church to create something so majestic and powerful. We could see all of Lyon from up on the hill. On our way up, we stopped and saw ancient Roman ruins that were over 2000 years old! WOW.
We actually managed to make it around to all of the historic and tourist sites of the city. Did you know that Lyon is the birthplace of traditional French cuisine?! The markets were incredible - people were eating oysters and extremely fancy and traditional French food everywhere.
Anna Cat and I grabbed lunch and ate it in la Place Bellecoeur (beautiful heart). The weather was incredible today - a perfect sunny day. We then walked over to the Place Terreux where there is a famous fountain that was created by the same man that created the Statue of Liberty. So so beautiful. There was actually a group protesting in Lyon today. I think it was a group of Tunisians? They were protesting repression... it was rather weird.
By the end of the afternoon, we were so tired. We literally walked around the entire city. Anna Cat and I think we probably walked around seven miles or so. It was totally worth it though because of how beautiful it was today. We took a lot of pictures so that was good news.
I love Europe. the end.
We actually managed to make it around to all of the historic and tourist sites of the city. Did you know that Lyon is the birthplace of traditional French cuisine?! The markets were incredible - people were eating oysters and extremely fancy and traditional French food everywhere.
Anna Cat and I grabbed lunch and ate it in la Place Bellecoeur (beautiful heart). The weather was incredible today - a perfect sunny day. We then walked over to the Place Terreux where there is a famous fountain that was created by the same man that created the Statue of Liberty. So so beautiful. There was actually a group protesting in Lyon today. I think it was a group of Tunisians? They were protesting repression... it was rather weird.
By the end of the afternoon, we were so tired. We literally walked around the entire city. Anna Cat and I think we probably walked around seven miles or so. It was totally worth it though because of how beautiful it was today. We took a lot of pictures so that was good news.
I love Europe. the end.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Nap
Bonsoir,
I love to nap - it is the greatest thing ever. So what is new with me in Grenoble? Well, I do not remember is I wrote about this yesterday or not, but I went to a bar/pub/hang out place last night called Just Beer. It was really cool and relaxed. We sat on beer crates and drank beer so it was good time.
Today was my last day of orientation! THANK GOODNESS. I think that classes might actually be challenging. I think I had convinced myself prior that studying abroad was going to be excruciatingly easy, but it does not seem to be the case. It is probably for the best.
Will and Ana made it to the Alps today and I am insanely jealous. Will texted me to tell me that is is absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to get out there. I might try to go next week to explore the little towns or go snowshoeing. I have to mentally prepare myself to ski.
I bought myself a train ticket to Lyon for tomorrow! I wish I would have waited because honestly right now all I want to do is go spend time in the Alps, but I will go to Lyon tomorrow. It will be a nice little day escape I think. I went around town today for a little bit after orientation - I love all of the hustle and bustle (I probably did not spell that saying correct at all) of the city; it is wonderful.
bisous,
Kate
I love to nap - it is the greatest thing ever. So what is new with me in Grenoble? Well, I do not remember is I wrote about this yesterday or not, but I went to a bar/pub/hang out place last night called Just Beer. It was really cool and relaxed. We sat on beer crates and drank beer so it was good time.
Today was my last day of orientation! THANK GOODNESS. I think that classes might actually be challenging. I think I had convinced myself prior that studying abroad was going to be excruciatingly easy, but it does not seem to be the case. It is probably for the best.
Will and Ana made it to the Alps today and I am insanely jealous. Will texted me to tell me that is is absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to get out there. I might try to go next week to explore the little towns or go snowshoeing. I have to mentally prepare myself to ski.
I bought myself a train ticket to Lyon for tomorrow! I wish I would have waited because honestly right now all I want to do is go spend time in the Alps, but I will go to Lyon tomorrow. It will be a nice little day escape I think. I went around town today for a little bit after orientation - I love all of the hustle and bustle (I probably did not spell that saying correct at all) of the city; it is wonderful.
bisous,
Kate
Thursday, January 13, 2011
13 janvier
Salut!
O Grenoble! Hello again - I am really starting to enjoy writing in this blog. I am sorry if I am boring, but I really think I will look back on this and be so thankful that I kept a blog of my time in Europe. The cat is on my bed again! I love her - she is so cute. Well, today was not as long as yesterday in terms of orientation stuff. I took my French placement exam - I thought it went pretty well except that I have forgotten all of the small details regarding relative pronouns etc. So that part was rather annoying. Afterwards, I went to a cafe with Will and Aaron and sat there for quite some time and talked about random happenings. I think tonight we are going to a bar called Just Beer - it should be fun. Aaron said it is very low key and the mission of the place is to bring good beer to Grenoble.
I bought my train pass ticket that will allow for me to get discount tickets :) hurray. I am going to try to go to Lyon this Saturday. I am looking forward to it.
Bisous,
Kate
O Grenoble! Hello again - I am really starting to enjoy writing in this blog. I am sorry if I am boring, but I really think I will look back on this and be so thankful that I kept a blog of my time in Europe. The cat is on my bed again! I love her - she is so cute. Well, today was not as long as yesterday in terms of orientation stuff. I took my French placement exam - I thought it went pretty well except that I have forgotten all of the small details regarding relative pronouns etc. So that part was rather annoying. Afterwards, I went to a cafe with Will and Aaron and sat there for quite some time and talked about random happenings. I think tonight we are going to a bar called Just Beer - it should be fun. Aaron said it is very low key and the mission of the place is to bring good beer to Grenoble.
I bought my train pass ticket that will allow for me to get discount tickets :) hurray. I am going to try to go to Lyon this Saturday. I am looking forward to it.
Bisous,
Kate
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
and the adventures begin!
SALUT!
O wow do I have a lot to write! Where to even begin?! I did not write anything yesterday, but it was fairly mellow. It rained ALL day it was awful. We went to all of the marches with Patrick and I am happy that we went around so we now know where they are.. I love the vegetable and produce markets because I got the chance to read all of the signs and learn the names of more vegetables and fruits so it was fun. I took a great nap and then I went to a pub where a traditional Irish folk band was playing. The bar was called Cafe Boyard I believe and I really liked the ambiance of it. I went with Patrick, Aaron, Will, Ana, Anna Kat, and Sidnie. We met a few of Aaron's fellow teaching assistants who were all really cool and nice. I had a lovely glass of red wine there. So here is where the fun of the evening really began - I will do my best to provide you with details so that you can hopefully find the humor in my evening. That bar closed at midnight and I had taken a nap and I did not want to go home. However, Ana, Anna Kat, Patrick wanted to leave so they all went home. So Will, Sidnie, and I decided to find something that was open. It was a little weird because there was NO ONE out last night - the streets were empty, most bars were closed... it worried me. Well we found a really sketchy bar called Le Couche Tard which translates to Go to Bed Late and it was open until 2. We went in and it was a great experience. Sidnie left after a while, so Will and I stayed and we actually met a lot of interesting people. One girl explained that no one was out because it is exam time so that it why the streets were empty. It was a relief for Will and me to hear that. Not that I am at all a party animal, but I definitely want some kind of nightlife because it is Europe and fun.
So when we left the bar, Will said he would walk me home... and we were walking and a French young man came up to Will and tried to kiss him! It was sooooo WEIRD. Granted Will is 6'5 so it was the strangest thing. Of course, Will was extremely bothered by it but I am happy that he didn't try to get into a fight with the guy... probably because we were both in shock.
So that was the excitement for the evening. Today, I had orientation for GEM. It was good! I met two really nice German students and a few French guys that are in the MIB program so they are actually older. It was a long day though, especially because I was so tired. Alright, that is all that I can write for now.
bisous,
Kate
O wow do I have a lot to write! Where to even begin?! I did not write anything yesterday, but it was fairly mellow. It rained ALL day it was awful. We went to all of the marches with Patrick and I am happy that we went around so we now know where they are.. I love the vegetable and produce markets because I got the chance to read all of the signs and learn the names of more vegetables and fruits so it was fun. I took a great nap and then I went to a pub where a traditional Irish folk band was playing. The bar was called Cafe Boyard I believe and I really liked the ambiance of it. I went with Patrick, Aaron, Will, Ana, Anna Kat, and Sidnie. We met a few of Aaron's fellow teaching assistants who were all really cool and nice. I had a lovely glass of red wine there. So here is where the fun of the evening really began - I will do my best to provide you with details so that you can hopefully find the humor in my evening. That bar closed at midnight and I had taken a nap and I did not want to go home. However, Ana, Anna Kat, Patrick wanted to leave so they all went home. So Will, Sidnie, and I decided to find something that was open. It was a little weird because there was NO ONE out last night - the streets were empty, most bars were closed... it worried me. Well we found a really sketchy bar called Le Couche Tard which translates to Go to Bed Late and it was open until 2. We went in and it was a great experience. Sidnie left after a while, so Will and I stayed and we actually met a lot of interesting people. One girl explained that no one was out because it is exam time so that it why the streets were empty. It was a relief for Will and me to hear that. Not that I am at all a party animal, but I definitely want some kind of nightlife because it is Europe and fun.
So when we left the bar, Will said he would walk me home... and we were walking and a French young man came up to Will and tried to kiss him! It was sooooo WEIRD. Granted Will is 6'5 so it was the strangest thing. Of course, Will was extremely bothered by it but I am happy that he didn't try to get into a fight with the guy... probably because we were both in shock.
So that was the excitement for the evening. Today, I had orientation for GEM. It was good! I met two really nice German students and a few French guys that are in the MIB program so they are actually older. It was a long day though, especially because I was so tired. Alright, that is all that I can write for now.
bisous,
Kate
Monday, January 10, 2011
Lost
Salut,
Today was my first Monday in France and it is weird to think that I have been here for almost a week. Today was interesting - I definitely got lost. It had to happen sometime - I went out exploring this morning before I met up with the rest of the group and I ended up not anywhere familiar. It was kind of exciting and frustrating at the same time. I managed to find my way back to le centre ville and I was able to go look around in H&M and Zara. I can tell that I will be spending some money in those stores this semester for sure!
Everyday I like to go to un cafe pour boire un cafe - it has become easily my favorite thing that the French do. It is so nice to just sit at un cafe with nothing else to think about and enjoy an espresso. I am sure that my Dad would be jealous of the espressos that I am drinking here.
Today we went the Musee de Grenoble and saw quite a lot of art. The museum had a collection of art from basically every century so that was cool to see the progression that art has taken over the past 6 centuries or so. I will say that I regret my lack of knowledge on the subjects of art and history. It is quite sad actually - although, I still enjoyed myself. My CEA director Patrick studied art in school so he was a wonderful guide to have with us. Afterwards we went to a Kabob stand and I got a cheese naan kabob with chicken and french fries in it. I have already had three of them. I lovee them!
When we went our separate ways, Will, Ana, Pat, and I decided to go get un cafe. It was lovely.
Last night I enjoyed a THREE hour dinner with my host family. They had guests over and it was quite the ordeal. We had l'aperatif before dinner which is just a before dinner drink. They kept offering me more and more liquor and I thought it would be rude to decline so by the time we had dinner I had already drunk three different cocktails. Too much needless to say. Dinner was amazing and it wad followed of course by le fromage (yumm - I have become a huge fan of brie) and then une bouche ( which is a special kind of ice cream cake). I loved it, but we did not finish eating until 11!
Well so far here are a few things that I love about the way of life in France:
1. The bread - it is official: I will never eat bread when I return from France because I am being spoiled with the most delicious bread ever.
2. The freshness of all of the food - basically I love French food - I love les marches, les cafes, les patisseries. everything about food I love here.
3. Les bisous - I find the hello kiss to be absolutely charming
4. The method of transportation - I love all of the walking and tram taking that currently occurs daily for me.
5. The French language - I am falling more in love with it everyday. It is simply beautiful
6. French children - they are somehow so much cuter in France. My host mom watches her grandkids during the week and they are simply precious. Of course I cannot understand a word of their French baby talk but I still enjoy watching them play.
Tonight: dinner with my family, then over to the girls' apartment and possibly out for a drink. :)
Bisous,
Kate
Today was my first Monday in France and it is weird to think that I have been here for almost a week. Today was interesting - I definitely got lost. It had to happen sometime - I went out exploring this morning before I met up with the rest of the group and I ended up not anywhere familiar. It was kind of exciting and frustrating at the same time. I managed to find my way back to le centre ville and I was able to go look around in H&M and Zara. I can tell that I will be spending some money in those stores this semester for sure!
Everyday I like to go to un cafe pour boire un cafe - it has become easily my favorite thing that the French do. It is so nice to just sit at un cafe with nothing else to think about and enjoy an espresso. I am sure that my Dad would be jealous of the espressos that I am drinking here.
Today we went the Musee de Grenoble and saw quite a lot of art. The museum had a collection of art from basically every century so that was cool to see the progression that art has taken over the past 6 centuries or so. I will say that I regret my lack of knowledge on the subjects of art and history. It is quite sad actually - although, I still enjoyed myself. My CEA director Patrick studied art in school so he was a wonderful guide to have with us. Afterwards we went to a Kabob stand and I got a cheese naan kabob with chicken and french fries in it. I have already had three of them. I lovee them!
When we went our separate ways, Will, Ana, Pat, and I decided to go get un cafe. It was lovely.
Last night I enjoyed a THREE hour dinner with my host family. They had guests over and it was quite the ordeal. We had l'aperatif before dinner which is just a before dinner drink. They kept offering me more and more liquor and I thought it would be rude to decline so by the time we had dinner I had already drunk three different cocktails. Too much needless to say. Dinner was amazing and it wad followed of course by le fromage (yumm - I have become a huge fan of brie) and then une bouche ( which is a special kind of ice cream cake). I loved it, but we did not finish eating until 11!
Well so far here are a few things that I love about the way of life in France:
1. The bread - it is official: I will never eat bread when I return from France because I am being spoiled with the most delicious bread ever.
2. The freshness of all of the food - basically I love French food - I love les marches, les cafes, les patisseries. everything about food I love here.
3. Les bisous - I find the hello kiss to be absolutely charming
4. The method of transportation - I love all of the walking and tram taking that currently occurs daily for me.
5. The French language - I am falling more in love with it everyday. It is simply beautiful
6. French children - they are somehow so much cuter in France. My host mom watches her grandkids during the week and they are simply precious. Of course I cannot understand a word of their French baby talk but I still enjoy watching them play.
Tonight: dinner with my family, then over to the girls' apartment and possibly out for a drink. :)
Bisous,
Sunday, January 9, 2011
la pluie
Bonsoir,
And at last... the rain. O how I missed the European days of gray skies and rain. Ha ha, seriously I do not mind it at all. I went to church this morning with Kelsey and her boyfriend. It is a small Protestant church in Grenoble. It was wonderful and in French! I liked it a lot - everyone was very friendly and inviting.
Afterwards, I walked to the marche to buy an apple and headed over to un cafe. It was so lovely because I sat at the cafe by myself and listening to my French podcast. When I got home, JC and Elise were not home so I decided to take a nap. My room is very cozy and I sleep pretty well here. The others in my program talked about going to a movie tonight and I will most likely go. They want to see Love and Other Drugs, which I have seen, but I will go if the rain lets up a bit. Goal for tomorrow: buy an umbrella! I have my raincoat, but the wind is blowing hard so I feel that if I walk to the cinema I will be soaked by the time I get there.
C'est tout pour maintenant,
Kate
Saturday, January 8, 2011
le samedi
Salut,
Today was my first Saturday in France! Hooray! Last night I went to the London Pub with Melody, Will, Patrick, Anna Kat, and Ana. It was a lot of fun! French boys are funny - they love to mess with American girls. There are a lot of students in Grenoble so there is definitely a good night life.
Well this morning, I woke up and hiked up to the Bastille with Will, Anna Kat, and Patrick. It was absolutely beautiful because we could see all of Grenoble and all of the mountain ranges. It was a beautiful day and it was clear enough for us to see Mount Blanc which is the highest peak in France - 15,770 feet! How crazy is that?! The Grand is about 13,700 feet! We hiked down and met the other members of our group for un cafe at a cafe that was established in the 1700s! It was wonderful. We walked around, grabbed some lunch, and split ways. I went with Sidnie and Will to Casino which is the name of the marches here. It was HUGEEE.
Then I came home and took a nap with the cat that lives here. She is a beautiful black cat and she is actually still in my room at the moment sleeping at the end of my bed. I went over to Ana's and Anna Kat's apartment to hang out for a while this evening. We decided that we were to tired to go to the discotheque tonight. Surprisingly, I had the energy to go, but I would never go by myself so it will have to be another night.
A demain,
Kate
Today was my first Saturday in France! Hooray! Last night I went to the London Pub with Melody, Will, Patrick, Anna Kat, and Ana. It was a lot of fun! French boys are funny - they love to mess with American girls. There are a lot of students in Grenoble so there is definitely a good night life.
Well this morning, I woke up and hiked up to the Bastille with Will, Anna Kat, and Patrick. It was absolutely beautiful because we could see all of Grenoble and all of the mountain ranges. It was a beautiful day and it was clear enough for us to see Mount Blanc which is the highest peak in France - 15,770 feet! How crazy is that?! The Grand is about 13,700 feet! We hiked down and met the other members of our group for un cafe at a cafe that was established in the 1700s! It was wonderful. We walked around, grabbed some lunch, and split ways. I went with Sidnie and Will to Casino which is the name of the marches here. It was HUGEEE.
Then I came home and took a nap with the cat that lives here. She is a beautiful black cat and she is actually still in my room at the moment sleeping at the end of my bed. I went over to Ana's and Anna Kat's apartment to hang out for a while this evening. We decided that we were to tired to go to the discotheque tonight. Surprisingly, I had the energy to go, but I would never go by myself so it will have to be another night.
A demain,
Kate
Friday, January 7, 2011
Salut
Salut mes amis,
Well today was a good day I would say. Unfortunately, I had a very difficult time falling asleep last night, thanks to jet lag, and only managed to sleep for about four hours. We met at the CEA office and then departed from there to visit GEM (Grenoble Ecole de Management) where Anna Cat, Sidnie, and I will be taking our business classes. It is an absolutely wonderful building and it is brand new actually! CNN did a report on the top Business Schools in the world and GEM ranks in at number 50 which is pretty awesome! I am actually excited to go to class there. It will be a nice change from Knoxville.
This morning I had brioche again with homemade jam! It was absolutely delicious. We walked around the city more today so it was a good day. The weather is unusually warm for this time of year supposedly - however I quite enjoy it!
Tonight I am meeting the other students in my program at the London Pub! I am looking forward to it very much.
Bisous,
Kate
Well today was a good day I would say. Unfortunately, I had a very difficult time falling asleep last night, thanks to jet lag, and only managed to sleep for about four hours. We met at the CEA office and then departed from there to visit GEM (Grenoble Ecole de Management) where Anna Cat, Sidnie, and I will be taking our business classes. It is an absolutely wonderful building and it is brand new actually! CNN did a report on the top Business Schools in the world and GEM ranks in at number 50 which is pretty awesome! I am actually excited to go to class there. It will be a nice change from Knoxville.
This morning I had brioche again with homemade jam! It was absolutely delicious. We walked around the city more today so it was a good day. The weather is unusually warm for this time of year supposedly - however I quite enjoy it!
Tonight I am meeting the other students in my program at the London Pub! I am looking forward to it very much.
Bisous,
Kate
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Day One
Salut!
Je suis ici!! Maybe I should start blogging in French! NOT - that would be wayyy to challenging. Well anyways, today was my first full day in Grenoble and it was grand.
I really like my host family. It is a husband and wife, Jean Claude and Elise - they are retired I believe. They have 3 sons and one of them still lives at home. His name is Guillaume and he is 32 years old. It is very different from the US because children do not live with their parents at that age. He is really nice though. They speak French all of the time which is a great challenge for me. Jean Claude does not speak any English actually. Elise is a wonderful cook! Oh my goodness! The first night we had roasted chicken, potatoes, green beans, a salad, and then a cake for dessert. It was so delicious. They also served two different types of wines with dinner and we drank each with specific courses. It was so cool. Tonight we had fish, rice, bread, greens, and CHEESE!!! I got to sample soo many different kinds and I surprising loved all of them. I am definitely going to have to walk A LOT because of all of the food and drink.
Well this morning Jean Claude dropped me off at the CEA office where I met Patrick who is in charge of the CEA program here. He is an extremely nice man originally from Michigan but has been in Grenoble for over 20 years because of his French wife. He was actually a chef at one point in his life so we both share a love for great food. I met the other students in my program. There is Kelsey, Sidnie, Ana, Ann-Catherine, Will, and Patrick. They are all really nice. Ana is actually from Boulder, CO and she brought her snowboard with her!!
We went to lunch at Le 5 which was absolutely incredible. Then we walked around the city for a long time. It was a good day.
I am very tired right now.. I might go to bed soon. O I got to Skype with Crissy! YAY.
Ciao,
Kate
Je suis ici!! Maybe I should start blogging in French! NOT - that would be wayyy to challenging. Well anyways, today was my first full day in Grenoble and it was grand.
I really like my host family. It is a husband and wife, Jean Claude and Elise - they are retired I believe. They have 3 sons and one of them still lives at home. His name is Guillaume and he is 32 years old. It is very different from the US because children do not live with their parents at that age. He is really nice though. They speak French all of the time which is a great challenge for me. Jean Claude does not speak any English actually. Elise is a wonderful cook! Oh my goodness! The first night we had roasted chicken, potatoes, green beans, a salad, and then a cake for dessert. It was so delicious. They also served two different types of wines with dinner and we drank each with specific courses. It was so cool. Tonight we had fish, rice, bread, greens, and CHEESE!!! I got to sample soo many different kinds and I surprising loved all of them. I am definitely going to have to walk A LOT because of all of the food and drink.
Well this morning Jean Claude dropped me off at the CEA office where I met Patrick who is in charge of the CEA program here. He is an extremely nice man originally from Michigan but has been in Grenoble for over 20 years because of his French wife. He was actually a chef at one point in his life so we both share a love for great food. I met the other students in my program. There is Kelsey, Sidnie, Ana, Ann-Catherine, Will, and Patrick. They are all really nice. Ana is actually from Boulder, CO and she brought her snowboard with her!!
We went to lunch at Le 5 which was absolutely incredible. Then we walked around the city for a long time. It was a good day.
I am very tired right now.. I might go to bed soon. O I got to Skype with Crissy! YAY.
Ciao,
Kate
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Atlanta
Hello!
I am currently writing to you from the Delta lounge in the Atlanta airport! My flight to Amsterdam leaves in T minus 2 hours and 16 minutes! yay for Europe! I cannot wait.
Simply,
Kate
I am currently writing to you from the Delta lounge in the Atlanta airport! My flight to Amsterdam leaves in T minus 2 hours and 16 minutes! yay for Europe! I cannot wait.
Simply,
Kate
Monday, January 3, 2011
January 3, 2011
Hello!
Well, I am going to attempt to keep a blog again! Third times a charm right? I am hoping to be able to write and post some videos while I am abroad this semester in Grenoble, France. I leave TOMORROW!! It is a scary/exciting thought. I fly from Memphis to Atlanta to Amsterdam and finally to Lyon. It is weird to think that I am actually studying abroad! Of course, I have always planned on it, but it is really happening. I am so thankful and blessed to be able to have this experience and I look forward to seeing what the great continent of Europe has in store!
Simply,
Kate
Well, I am going to attempt to keep a blog again! Third times a charm right? I am hoping to be able to write and post some videos while I am abroad this semester in Grenoble, France. I leave TOMORROW!! It is a scary/exciting thought. I fly from Memphis to Atlanta to Amsterdam and finally to Lyon. It is weird to think that I am actually studying abroad! Of course, I have always planned on it, but it is really happening. I am so thankful and blessed to be able to have this experience and I look forward to seeing what the great continent of Europe has in store!
Simply,
Kate
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