Break #2

I can’t believe it, but tomorrow I’m off and traveling again! Yes, I’m skipping a week of school, but since we don’t really do anything in class anyway, it’s alright. I am meeting my aunts in Paris for the weekend, and then a good friend from Holy Cross is coming to visit for his spring break where we will head to Normandy! I can’t wait to see more of France, and while seeing other countries is amazing too, I actually find it comforting to be able to speak the language and know what signs are telling me. Sometimes in Prague or Austria there would be a sign with exclamation points, so obviously it was important, but for all I know it could have been saying, “Have a nice day!” instead of “Route is barred because of falling rocks! DO NOT ENTER!” I’m really excited to show off France to Greg and my aunts (and dazzle them with my french too :0)

Breakthrough

So last night was a miracle. Josette and I were talking last night over dinner, after my week-long vacation. She must have missed me, because while we were talking about next year and whether or not she’ll host another Holy Cross student (by the way, she will) she added, “I hope they’ll be as nice as you.” I was touched. I mean, that’s basically the nicest thing she’s said to me in the 5 months that I’ve known her. If you haven’t already gotten the memo, she’s not exactly the warm cuddly type. I remember being so upset when I found out that she would be my host mother – this is the woman that Holy Cross students had stories about, who was “crazy.” And while I’ve learned that yes, she’s crazy, it’s a fun sort of crazy. She’s opened up to me, and I to her. It’s taken her a long time to accept me, and I’ve gotten used to her remarks and bluntness. She loves the fact that I’m independent and stick up for myself, and honestly, I like how she’s self-sufficient and doesn’t really give a damn. It’s almost refreshing. However, I am glad that she’s not my mother :0)

The best wake up call

Last night I woke to the sound of my phone. Half asleep I looked at the time, realizing that it was only 4:30AM. Strange I thought, and then casting a glance at my portable, saw that it was my Dad calling. Panic hit, knowing that he wouldn’t be calling me at this hour unless something happened. So I picked up quickly (still half asleep mind you) and said, “Hello?” The response I got was “The garage door won’t open.” I started to laugh. He had mistaken me for my mother. I asked “Do you know what time it is?” He responded, still unaware that he called his daughter across the ocean “Um, I think it’s 10:30.” “Well, in France it’s 4:30am” I told him. He finally understood who he called by mistake, and although apologized profusely and told me to go back to sleep, I will never forget the wake up call that allowed me to for a few minutes hear my dad’s voice over in America.

5 minute friends

Traveling at my age, in countries where you don’t know the language, on a limited budget, is to say the least, interesting. You have such random encounters, such strange experiences, and you meet people that you know you’ll never see again. For example, when Meg and I were in Vienna, we went to a pub and met these Macedonian guys. They were very nice and we just made conversation over some drinks. After hanging out with them for a second night in a row (that to say the least was strange in itself…how we randomly bumped into them again) we basically were just like, “Ok! See you never! Thanks for the laughs and have a nice life!” In Salzburg Meg and I roomed with two Americans from New Jersey who go to Quinnipiac, and then we also met two lovely girls staying in the same hostel who are teaching English in France (Bretagne area), one from Wales and one from Boston! Laura from Boston might even come visit me in Dijon! On the way back from Munich I met a guy named Austin from Hamilton College, and we basically spent the night talking. It is so strange – how paths collide, who you meet, all based on the smallest circumstances. You meet for just a minute in life and yet you won’t forget it.

Break #1

Here is an entry I wrote 2 days ago, when I was in Munich Germany:

Ugh. I don’t want to look at any more buildings or churches. I can’t take any more pictures. I can't walk anymore. I am spent. Thus, I am sitting next to a big church in the famous Marienplatz, eating a sandwich (that looked like turkey but tastes suspiciously like bologna) and people watching. People watching is great – you learn a lot from the culture of the city just by observing the people. For example, you get to know how the youth dresses, how families interact, if people bump into each other what they say, etc.

Oh, and the reason why I sound so pessimistic? That’s because this is the last leg of my week-long trip after 500 pictures (yes, that’s right) and many miles of walking. I started in Prague, headed to Vienna, then to Salzburg, and for a few hours I’m visiting Munich before taking a bus back to France. The whole trip has been an adventure, and honestly, I am always surprised at the end of a trip to find myself in one piece alive and breathing :0) In Prague I stayed with a friend who lives there (and thus fluent in Czech and knows the area very well). Katrina was a great host – she showed me around, introduced me to her friends and to yummy Czech beer. My kind of exploring a city is leaving the map behind and just discovering things by chance. That’s what happened when I came across the gorgeous castle on the hill and caught the changing of the guards! Prague has a whimsical feeling about it – perhaps due to its grand palace, the cobble-stoned roads, the buildings which are painted in pinks and greens and blues and yellows, or that it is so tourist friendly. I could have stayed much longer in this little, but dynamic city.

Vienna was next and it was lovely – so clean and the buildings were so majestic and large. I had met up with my friend Meghan there (who is studying in Spain) and it was great to do some sightseeing with a friend from Holy Cross. My favorite part was going to the Schobroun, the HUGE palace where the Hapsburgs ruled. I will never forget how windy it was nor how beautiful the clouds looked. We also saw the room where Mozart gave his first concert (at age 6 or something), where Franz Joseph I did his work, where Empress Sisi did her hair, not to mention the expanse of gardens behind the palace. This was also the place that Marie Antoinette grew up in before she moved to France. I was in awe.

Salzburg – the hills were definitely alive with the sound of music! Meg and I splurged on the Sound of Music Tour, but honestly it was so worth it. It took us (on a very comfy bus which was a blessing for our worn-out legs) to all the sites where the movie was filmed. I saw the gazebo, the house on the lake, the church where Maria and the Captain were married, the yellow house, the trees where the kids swung on, and lastly the abbey where the kids when to find Maria. In Salzburg (which was so tiny and tranquil after Vienna) I got a true Austrian feel – I saw people dressed in the traditional Austrian garb, heard the bells from the churches, learned about (and tasted!) schnitzel, drank beer at a bier garten with other Austrians, and breathed in the lovely mountain air (the views were absolutely breathtaking – I had never seen mountains like that before!). I spontaneously bought a CD from a guy off the street (guitar music – SO good…already listened to it about a million times), watched a life-size chess match, saw a manifestation (the Serbs were not happy that Kosovo became independent…but they were protesting in Austria?) and ate the most amazing apple strudel. We were also lucky in terms of the weather – instead of a foot and a half of snow that is normal for Salzburg for the end of February, we had temperatures that would be found in late April. It was simply gorgeous, and my pictures do not do the views justice.

Now I’m in Munich, the home of the infamous Oktoberfest, from where I’m picking up a very “hip” vibe. It seems like these Germans are all pretty chill about life (unlike the French…), who really enjoy their beer (and thus drink A LOT and at any time of the day), who rock climb anywhere (well, I saw some groups along the river walls and bridges), and who eat a lot of sausages and pretzels. Hey – this is the extent of things you can pick up from only being in a city for 4 hours :0)

Overall, an amazing week, with so many memories that I won’t (and can’t) readily forget.

A Piece of Holy Cross in Dijon

Last night, 5 professors from Holy Cross came to Dijon, to check up on the students and to get feedback on how the study abroad program in France was running. We met up with them for dinner, and we had a typical French meal (meaning that it lasted about 4 hours...). We met the new study abroad coordinator, I met up with my old French professor, and overall, it was just so nice to be able to speak to people from Holy Cross, knowing that they were on campus a short few hours before. I do miss Holy Cross, and it's simply because when I'm there, I am so comfortable. It's such a small school that it's like a little family. Here in France, there is a tangible formal distance held between the students and the professors...but at Holy Cross, that barrier doesn't exist. Even with the professors who came to meet us, some with whom I have never met before, well we ended up talking the night away like we were the best of friends. They wanted to hear our stories, hear what was working and what wasn't working, and above all, wanted to get a general feel of how we felt about France. We all answered frankly, but honestly, I had really nothing bad to say. This year is a whirlwind of new opportunities, scary moments, exciting times, times when you feel confident, times when you feel like you've hit rock bottom. We told it all, and the adults were happy to listen. The best part of the night was when they brought out the present - a copy of the Crusader (the Holy Cross student-run paper). Reading it made me realize that nothing has changed back at home, that it'll be the same when we go back. We, on the other hand, will be the ones who have changed.

Skiing with the French

So this past Saturday, the Holy Crossers took a day trip to Les Jura to faire du ski! All in all, it was a blast. The mountain range is located in France, but half of it is also in Switzerland. I got a kick out of going to the top, and there being a sign that pointed right for Switzerland, and left for France :0) Sadly, we weren't allowed to go on the Swiss side (but I did hear some german!)

So skiing in Europe is not the same as skiing in the States. First of all, there is a lot more drinking that goes on during the day. The bars are bondee, plein du personnes qui veulent un biere ou un vin chaud. Some of the ensembles that people were wearing was straight out of the 80's, and since some of the students had to borrow pants/jackets/gloves from their host mothers, well, we too looked simply fabulous. Les Jura is a tiny mountain, so people were just taking their time down the mountain...and the ski lifts were awfully slow. Also, not surprisingly, at the end of a run, the french would whip out their cigarettes and light up :0)

But despite the differences, we had such a great time. The weather was beautiful, the snow was light and fluffly, and although it was chilly, we learned that the alcoholic drinks actually work to keep you warm :0) The Alps will be next!

faire du ski! - to go skiing
bondee - full
plein du personnes qui veulent un biere ou un vin chaud - packed with people wanting a beer or hot wine