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
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
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
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