A Mind Boggling Experience Blog 15

Study abroad is not for people who don't want to think.

Besides trying to keep up with the language (which has not gone too well today) I am constantly forced to confront cultural issues, and new ideas as I meet new people and have new experiences.  I grew up in a Parma bubble and it has burst, leaving me sticky and slightly confused.

The French live differently than we do, and I've had to step back and examine a lot of my perceptions on "the right way to live" and accept things that don't seem normal to me.  I'm living in a country with a socialist government hanging on during a strike that is monstrous compared to any political movement I've ever seen.  But to be honest, socialism really seems to work for the French.  I never thought socialism could be a good thing, but that is probably due to my American education, because the French wouldn't have it any other way (or the strikes would turn into riots.)  Also, I'm constantly meeting people with ideas and views very different from my own.  It isn't only French people either, it is my fellow American students, who come from all over the country, as well as other study abroad students from around the world.  There are so many different perspectives on life, I don't even know what to think anymore!

I've had to face the fact that I have been closed minded for a lot of my life.  That is actually a major part of my personality, I'd fight to the death over an opinion rather than admit I was wrong.  But now, here in France, it is impossible to remain unchanged by everything that is going on around me.  I am becoming more open minded, but sometimes it feels like my mind is expanding so fast it is going to explode!

So what have I learned?  I need to make my own opinions, not just adopt the opinions of others blindly.  I may actually disagree with my close friends or family :( sometimes.  Maybe certain things, like political systems, don't have right or wrong answers, just different ideas that are equally good or bad.  And finally, it is OK to not have an opinion, maybe certain things are so big that it takes a lot of time to fully understand them.

All of this is so mind bending it hurts sometimes! Makes me feel weak to not have a position, to admit that I'm not that smart.  But what has kept me from completely going insane?  My faith.

It seems like a foreign concept to people, why I cling to my faith the way I do.  They don't understand why I would limit myself that way, following the rules sounds like giving up the fun.  But my faith is not rules, it is freedom.  Because I believe that Jesus Christ died and took the punishment for my sin, I can live with hope for life after this one.  He has given me grace, that covers everything I have ever done wrong!  Imagine that, being pardoned for even the most atrocious crimes!  Doesn't sound restrictive to me.  So if it is all about grace, why do I live this way?  Well, it is pretty simple, I'm ETERNALLY grateful to my Savior, I LOVE Him with my whole heart, and I know He loves me too.  Anyone who has ever loved someone else knows that love and trust go hand in hand.  I TRUST Jesus with my life, and I know that He knows everything, so when He tells me something is a bad idea, I listen, because I believe He is looking out for me, and has my best interests in mind.  It may seem like rules, but it is comfort, knowing that He holds my life in his hand, and is protecting me.

So in all this CRAZINESS when I don't seem to know what to think anymore, I can still turn to my God.  I may not have all the answers, I may not have ANY of the answers, but He does :)  And I'm so glad, because otherwise my brain may have turned to jelly by now.
 

Living in Franglais Blog 14

Franglais:  A mix of Francais (French) and Anglais (English)

I thought I would write a blog for anyone who has ever been curious about what it is like to try and learn a foreign language through the "immersion" method.

3 months is all it takes to become fluent in another language.  I've heard it time and time again, I really hope it is true because I have exactly 3 months here in France.

That phrase makes study abroad sound like it is all about time, so I sort of expected to just spend 3 months here and then...WHACK! get knocked on the head by the language fairy and VOILA! je peux parler en francais :)
That's not how it happens.

I got here, and could barely put a sentence together, it was rough.  I couldn't really understand anyone, people had to talk to me like a 3 year old, and then sometimes I still didn't understand.  I was embarrassed ALL THE TIME because my French was so bad.  If I was in a store, and I needed something important, I started the conversation by asking if the person spoke English, because I didn't even want to try in French.

I was good at French in high school and college, I always got A's which let me to believe that I had a handle on the language.  But classroom French and actual French are completely totally different.  I got a reality check, it hurt my pride and was very discouraging.

I decided in the first week that there was no way I could possibly achieve fluency, but I've come so far since then.  Learning French for me has come in a series of spurts, intense curves and plateaus and it is so much more complicated than I realized!

 Learning a language through immersion kind of sneaks up on you.  At first it feels like your mouth is stuffed with cotton and you have the ideas, but just can't get them out!  Then, slowly, time oils your jaw, your tongue loosens up, the cotton disappears and after a few weeks, you can speak!  But in this phase you grammar is horrendous, your accent is terrible and people care barely understand YOU and you can't understand them much either.

Phase two:  all that knowledge you learned in the classroom suddenly starts to come in handy!  You find that if you pause for a moment before you start you sentence you can put your verb in the correct tense, and maybe even place your direct objects in the right spot.  You start to sound a little more intelligent :) (ps. this is so much harder than it sounds)

Next comes the accent.  Occasionally people correct your pronunciation and you begin to listen closely and modify your words to match those around you.  The best part about mastering the accent though, is that you can begin to understand people better!  French and English share so many words that when you listen correctly you hear a million words that you already knew, but never understood before because of the accent.  

Now is the time when new words start pouring into your brain.  You learn phrases, and vocab at a rapid pace.  You hear new words, you read new words.  At the beginning of this phrase it is really hard to remember a word if you have just heard it, it has to be written out to be understood, but soon after you can visualize in French :)

Here comes the coolest part:  You begin to think in French.  All the sudden, in conversation, you realize that you aren't translating every word in your head before you speak, you are just, talking.  It is a really awesome feeling, and does wonders for your confidence :)

Eventually people begin to tell you how much you have progressed, and remarking to other people "Doesn't she speak French well!"  It is so nice :)  And you are not nervous anymore when you have to go to an information desk and ask a question because you KNOW you can handle the French.  It is actually really exciting :)

This is as far as I've gotten, and I'm definitely not content yet.  My grammar is still atrocious, I'm lacking a lot of vocab, and I can't understand as well as I would like to.  But I have 2 months left, and that may just be enough time to become fluent :)  Over all though, I have to admit, I'm really proud of my progress.  Learning a language through immersion is EXTREMELY difficult, but looking back, it is a really nifty process.

The worst part of study abroad Blog 13

There is nothing worse than being 6000 miles away from home when a loved one passes away.  It hasn't been any of my relatives in particular, but almost everyday this week I've received news that someone has passed away.  My heart aches for my friends.  Friends that have lost brothers, daughters, grandmothers and grandfathers.  I can't be there to give them a hug, or comfort them.  And one in particular was someone I really cared about, and I want desperately to be able to go to the funeral, his family is my family, and I want to be there for them.  I feel so far away, I feel so alone.  My friends and family are hurting, I'm hurting.  I've never missed home so much.

The only thing I can do is pray, and believe me, I am.

I find comfort in the fact that there is a Heaven, and that makes this less painful all around.  But I just want to be with my family right now, and I can't.

So this is me, sending digital hugs to everybody who has lost someone in the past couple weeks.  I'm thinking about you and I'm praying for you constantly, I'm so sorry for your loss.

Retraction. Blog 12

There are two sides to every story.  

Maybe I was a little harsh on the French strikers.  

Maybe because it isn't a simple situation there is no simple answer.  

Here is the other side of the story, you can decide for yourself.  

The French government is raising retirement age from 60 to 62, the whole nation is on strike, this has been going on periodically for months.  2 years doesn't sound like it is worth this chaos to me.  But maybe, because I am not a French citizen, it is not the same.  What I have learned is that the French are upset about more than just the retirement age, they are upset because they live in a "republic" but the government is not acting like it.  President Sarkozy never mentioned this retirement reform in his plans when he ran for president, and now the French feel like he is just throwing this new law at them.  Also, he never stopped to ask what the people wanted.  I've heard that 71% of the population is against this reform, and if the government is supposed to represent the people then this law shouldn't pass.  The strikers want negotiation, they may understand that reform is necessary, but they want to participate in the decision.  Sarkozy has made it very clear that this is HIS decision, and there will be no negotiation.  

So maybe this strike has more passion in it than I accredited it with.  I suppose if I felt that my government was overstepping its bounds, and taking away my freedom, I would be upset too.  I suppose that if the government refused to listen to the voice of the people, I would be angry.  I suppose that maybe the French are justified.  Perhaps they see no other way to be heard.  In a republic, the people's opinion should matter.  The people have ideas, and THE WORLD WILL KNOW!

And the World WILL KNOW! Blog 11

I know what you are all thinking:  2 blogs in one day!  That's crazy!  Nobody is going to take that much time to read Courtney Burnside's ramblings!  Yeah yeah.  Oh well, I've been inspired, I'm going to write.  

So the title of this blog is a song from The Newsies in case you are not enough of a Disney fanatic to catch the reference.  The Newsies is a movie about the paperboy strike of 1899.  The paperboys are getting cheated out of wages and they go on strike, and sing a lot about it.  I love that movie.

 Anyways, that was my frame of reference for strikes.  Strikes are full of passion, standing up against the unjust, fighting for what you believe!  Such a romantic idea.  But now that I am in the country that strikes as a national hobby I've been changing my mindset.  Here is a little background information on the situation here in France:  By 2050 there will be 2 retired people for every 1 working person in France.  That is not a good statistic at all because the working people's taxes are paying the retired people's salaries, and 1 working person cannot support 2 retired people.  The retiring age here in France is 60 years old.  President Sarkozy has proposed changing it to 62 in order to avoid a serious problem in the coming years.  And the nation has responded with 4,5,6 I've lost count, nation-wide strikes.  When I say nation-wide I mean that the banks, the post offices, trains, planes, buses, schools and more are shut down or delayed.  It is getting really irritating.  

I see nothing wrong with letting the government know how you feel about something, but it is already a law, and nothing is going to change.  This is a serious issue, and there aren't many other options.  People are not really being treated unfairly, this is just the way it has to be.  The Communist Party who has been leading most the strikes and rallies has not even proposed an alternative solution.  

The concept of striking is overused here in France.  They are so common that there are a set of striking rules.  The majority of strikes happen on Tuesdays or Thursdays and you must let your employer know in advance if you are going to strike.  For example, there is going to be ANOTHER strike Oct. 23rd.  There are signs up the day before at the bus stops predicting delays and cancellations, and everyone just sighs and tries to find another way to school.  If they want to really make an impact, they cannot go on strike over everything that makes them unhappy, because nobody even pays attention to the strikes anymore.  The strikes really only irritate the common citizen who is trying to take the bus to work, or wants his mail to go through on time.  Strikes in the US have so much more meaning because they are a last resort.  The people here need to decide what is important enough to demand attention for the government.  Then they can go on strike and make the strike big and drastic, but they can't do that for everything.  

Finally, the student strikes.  I looked out the window of my classroom today to see the entrance to the high school across the street blocked of with a huge stack of DUMPSTERS.  There were a bunch of kids sitting outside by this mountain of plastic hanging out.  Our teacher explained to us that the STUDENTS were on strike, because of the retirement age.  Whatever.  I don't believe that for a second.  They wanted to be dramatic, like their parents, and go on strike.  They wanted to attract attention, they wanted the day off school.  I looked at that pile of dumpsters and thought "that would never fly in the USA."  I feel that if the students want to act like adults, they better have adult reasons.  They way it is because of retirement age, but I don't think they have a clue what they are doing.  They don't understand the meaning of their actions.  

This being said, I've only ever heard French people complain about the strikes.  Nobody seems to like them, yet they continue to go on.  It is a weird paradox, it is so much a part of French life and culture that it is accepted, but I can't acceptt it.  I may just be a 19 year old college kid, but I think that these strikes have really gone far enough.  I hope they end soon.  This whole thing really killed my romantic ideas about injustice and striking, I'll never look at The Newsies the same again.

In Defense of English Classes Blog 10

I read an article today in French class that was very difficult to understand.  It was a piece describing somebody and I only knew  half the words, but when it was being read out loud I could feel the author's emotions.  I could hear a purposeful rhythm in the sentences, and I paused to appreciate the beautiful French rhetoric.  And all the sudden, I missed AP English in high school.  Wow, that is not a feeling one gets often, but in that moment I realized how valuable all my English classes throughout school had been.  

I miss being able to write well.  I can probably write at the French level of a 7 year old right now, and I miss being able to express myself with words.  I can write what happened, but I can't make it sound good, I can't make it sound real, or put any feeling into my words.  And it is almost impossible to be persuasive without good rhetoric to back up your ideas.  It doesn't matter how smart you are or how much you know, if you can't speak well, or write well, no one will ever listen to you.  

For example:  I was ripped off by a taxi driver.  I am positive he took advantage of my friend and I because we were young and we didn't speak much French.  I didn't even have the words to challenge the price he gave us.  I was so frustrated that I could not do ANYTHING about the situation.  My second thought was to write a letter of complaint to the taxi service.  But they would throw it out, my French would be so terrible and full of mistakes that no one would take me seriously.  

Example 2:  Politics, politics, politics.  France and America have very different political systems and I often find myself discussing these systems with French people.  But I am so limited as to what i can say.  I have so many IDEAS but I can't convey them!  I am only as smart as my words allow me to be.  

It is so difficult to truly appreciate the opportunity that you have to learn English and to learn it well, until you find out what life is like when you are unable to express yourself.  It is so hard.  So this blog is in honor of all my English teachers that I've ever had.  Because without them, I would always feel trapped by my own inability to wield the english language.  Intelligence is useless without an outlet, and that outlet, for us, is English.   

And this blog is also written to anyone who has ever complained about an English class (including me).  You don't even know how lucky you are to be able to learn how to use language effectively.  That skill will benefit you for the rest of your lives.  So, even though its tough, and a TON of work *cough Mrs. Lateulere *cough, it will be worth it in the end.  Hang in there and try to appreciate it :)

When in Rome... Blog 9

So you probably all know that I spent last weekend in Rome.  My profile picture is a dead give-away.  But I thought I would share a little bit about my trip.  As always, I will mix some life lessons in with some humor (because I can't seem to avoid awful situations that are hilarious when you look back on them.)  And I will try to paint a nice picture of the city for you.  (of course if I don't do a good job, I have an entire facebook album dedicated to my trip)

The story starts about 2 weeks ago.  My friend Lindsey and I are walking out of a class and we look at our schedules only to realize that we didn't have any classes on Friday September 30th.  A day off in this school is really something special.  For the whole semester we only have 2 long weekends for mini excursions, and in that moment Lindsey and I were faced with the fact that we had ANOTHER long weekend, that we hadn't known about and we needed to make the most of it!  There were 9 days to go, to plan something, to take a trip, and the words "let's go to ROME!" slipped out of my mouth.  2 days later, after much credit card hassle and insane travelling research we had plane tickets, and 6 days later we were on a plane bound for Rome.  

Rome is stunning, it is really so beautiful.  Every time you turn around you spot another ruin, or another ancient building that was constructed with so much beauty and precision that it makes your jaw drop.  I have mentioned how much I love the history in France, well in Rome, I was in a city that was even OLDER than any city in France.  I loved it.  There is so much to take in, Lindsey and I walked around the city marveling at how well the old and the new blended to create such a wonderful place.  

A mix of ancient temples, a massive blood sport arena, and the capital of the Catholic Church make up this city.  It is a bizarre mix, but Rome wouldn't be Rome without them. The Colosseum is both beautiful and terrible.  The structure itself is stunning, but when you learn about the blood sports it churns your stomach a little.  The Colosseum was the home of the Gladiators, who were paid to fight, but it was also the place where many prisoners breathed their last, in front of thousands of onlookers.  It is believed that the Colosseum held about 50,000 people, and that it was packed every time it was open.  Everyone loves a spectacle, but i have a hard time understanding people who watch other people die for enjoyment.  But then you have to wonder, would people from another culture or another time find our sources of entertainment sickening?  

The pagan temples and the Vatican are within walking distance of each other.  It could actually be said that the Vatican is the reason the temples are in ruins because when Christianity became popular in Rome, the temples were torn down and used to create Vatican city.  Although I don't agree with the things the pagan temples stood for, it saddened me to see so much history lost.  I suppose they thought they were doing what was right, but I can't help but feeling that love and kindness are a better witness than destruction and condemnation.  Of course, I could be thinking way too symbolically about the whole thing.  At least a few buildings (temples that were converted into churches) were saved so we could have an idea what ancient Roman life was like.  

This whole trip has been a huge lesson in Catholicism for me, thanks to my dear friend Lindsey :) Considering that Catholicism was the only form of Christianity for a very long time, and Europe was one of the first mission fields of the early church, there is Catholic stuff everywhere!  I've been in so many cathedrals so far, and Rome was no different, except they are called Bascilicas.  So Lindsey has been kindly answering all my elementary questions as we tour these amazing churches and I have to say: I understand.  I understand the Catholic faith (well at least better than I did).  The Catholics, just like the Protestants, have really good reasons for everything they do, and they have scripture back up.  So who was I to ever say they were wrong?  Maybe, just because I don't always agree, doesn't mean it is wrong.  I've reached the conclusion that while there is only one way to Heaven (Jesus) there are many ways to practice your faith, and worship.  People have the right to develop their relationship with God in whatever way is most comfortable for them.  And anyone (catholic or not) should visit Vatican City if they have the chance because it is beautiful.  

Once again, I feel like I'm growing up here in Europe.  I've finally stopped fighting it, I can't be a kid forever, and there are definitely some perks to being an adult.  I can't believe that Lindsey and I booked our own tickets, and hostel and toured Rome on our own!  While we had some bumps along the way, (we accidentally got on a train bound for Pisa, luckily we got off before it left) and we got lost a few times, and almost missed our plane, it was such a learning experience.  I've found that I am capable of more than I ever imagined, and I'm excited to keep going :)

Feminine Products, Fire Departments, and Polite Rocks in a Country of Misunderstandings Blog 8

There are endless misunderstandings as a study abroad student.  Everything seems to go wrong ALL the time, anything from a trip to the grocery store to a simple phone call can make you want to bash your head against the wall and wonder how you came to be so stupid.  The best way to study abroad is to learn to laugh at yourself, or you will spend your whole trip crying.  Fortunately, I was already used to laughing at myself because my blond moments are not limited to France, but I'm pretty sure I've never had this many misunderstandings at home...

Polite Rocks

So yesterday I had my first Art History exam.  I was studying before the exam with Lindsey and we were discussing in Franglais (half french half english) the time periods we had learned.   Our test was focusing on the Paleolithique and the Neolithique and we had to know how to distinguish between the two.  I was looking through my notes and translated something I had written out lout.  "Don't forget" I said to Lindsey "that the Neolithique is the Age of Polite Rocks."  "WHAT???????"  Was about her response.  I'm like, "yeah, that's when they were more advanced so the stuff they made was nicer, not as rough, polite, you know!" Haha, that was not the case...the Neolithique was the Age of POLISHED rocks...not polite rocks, I had misunderstood the French in class.  Ha, and I thought my chemistry class last semester was hard to understand!

Fire Departments

My credit card was giving me troubles, so I finally decided to call my bank.  I whipped out my calling card and started dialing the number to make a call to the USA.  I'm not going to lie, I was pretty excited to be able to talk to someone in an intelligent manner, in English.  So imagine my surprise when I hear a "bonjour!" on the other end of the line.  "Bonjour?"  I replied and quickly tried to explain that I had called the wrong number, but I don't know the word for wrong and I don't know the word for correct, so I basically just said I had called a bad number.  The lady on the other end wanted to know who I was trying to call, I tried to explain that it was supposed to be a phone card, and apologized for my bad French.  Finally, she said in English: DO YOU NEED HELP?  No?  I don't need help? I can figure it out on my own I think..."Ok, because this is the FIRE DEPARTMENT"  oops...

Tampons

Lindsey and I were checking out a French thrift store and she happened to purchase 15 euros worth of stuff.  The lady gave her a receipt that was like a check off sheet, every time you spend 15 euros you get to fill in a box and eventually get something free.  I have included the paper here for your viewing pleasure :) We wondered what she would get for free, then we looked at the bottom of the paper, it read that 15 euros gets you 1 tampon...what??? Why on earth would a store be giving out 1 free tampon? What if a guy made a purchase?  We said nothing, but showed it to a French friend later.  This girl knew some English and when she saw the paper, and the confused look on our faces she started cracking up and explained that "tampon" is the french word for "stamp" wow. 

Kings and Taxes Blog 7

Europe is so beautiful, it seems like everywhere you turn there is an amazing cathedral or an ancient castle.  I've heard it said many times (and made the comment myself more than once) "Why don't we have anything this gorgeous in America!  America is so boring!"  I've thought about why we have nothing that rivals the Opera House in Paris or Notre Dame...do Americans really lack appreciation for art and creating beautiful things?  Then finally it hit me: there is nothing wrong with us Americans, the problem is: we haven't had any kings.  

What? I know what you are thinking, of course we haven't had any kings we are a free country!  Down with the monarchy, hooray for Republics, and the right to vote!  And I'm not proposing that monarchies are better than democracy, but after going on tours of a a whole lot of these amazing castle structures I've heard one phrase repeated over and over "and King so and so had this built in the blah blah century...to try to upstage the stuff his dad had built..."  So what I have realized is that Kings are the only people who ever decide to build cathedrals that take a hundred years of work and a million laborers.  And the people built them, because they didn't have a choice!  

Think about what would happen today if our President decided to use TAX PAYER MONEY to build something like that!  The people would revolt!  And that is exactly what happened in France, and now that they have a republic they aren't making any new cathedrals...I can still appreciate the beauty of these structures, I honestly love looking at them, but now I can also see the greed seeping through the walls like dirty mortar.  How dare those kings spend all their money on this kind of stuff when people were starving?  And these people paid for it and didn't even have the right to say that maybe the floor didn't need done in all gold mosaic because it would be more cost efficient!

So next time I start to complain about the lack of man-made beauty in America, I remind myself of the cost of the beauty here.  And I remember that as long as we are a free country, we will never see building like this in America, but I hope our taxes are being put to a better use.  

Life lessons and Sunday Resolutions...Blog 6

Week 1 of my classes is over.  I've learned a few things, made a few observations and a few goals for this week.  I will now share with you the most interesting parts of all those things i just mentioned bc if i sat and wrote it ALL out, i would bore you.  And i want people to read my blogs....so here goes:

We will start with the biggest thing i have learned so far:  I have learned how to not be a control freak.  Ok maybe that isn't entirely true, but I'm on the way there, and I've made a lot of progress.  Before study abroad I always had to know WHEN things were going to happen, HOW LONG they were going to go, HOW FAR AWAY i was going to be, WHO was going to be there etc.  I was obsessed with time, things needed to start on time and end on time.  I have always been this way, I just need to be in control of everything.  I'm also a planner, I either make the plans or know exactly what they are before I do things.  I'm not very spur of the moment at all, it scares me to not know exactly what is going on.  Anyways, so i knew that this was something I needed to work on because it is not healthy to live this way.  I am a Christian and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God has a plan for my life, but He doesn't always tell me what it is when I want to know.  And it would really be good if I could be content knowing He has a plan even if I don't know it....yet.  So I knew that this trip would take me out of my comfort zone and I hoped it may help me learn to be a little more easy going.   

Let me just say, that I have gone cold turkey on my planning addiction.  Why?  Because I don't understand enough French to know where I am going when people take me places.  Example #1  On a Wednesday my host mom asks me if I want to go pick mushroom with the youth group on saturday.  I say yes and I'm excited that I understood her, little did I know I only got half the conversation.  The night before when I am packing my lunch my host mom is telling me all about the mushroom trip, I'm listening to the best of my ability, catching about half of the words when all the sudden i hear "...en espagne..."  WOAH!  "EN ESPAGNE???"  I repeat...and yes i find out that i was told on Wednesday that this mushroom hunting trip is going to be in SPAIN.  Good thing i figured that out before we left or I wouldn't have taken my passport.  And this kind of thing happens again, and again!  Today I almost walked out of the house to go swimming without a bathing suit because I had no idea we were going swimming.  Last night I went to an awesome fair, but almost didn't wear a coat because I thought we were going to visit a family with the last name of Foire, not going to the Foire Festival which is OUTSIDE.  And even if I do know where I am going there is no way i know when we are coming home, or if we are making a million stops on the way there or who we are going to see.  All in all i guess it is good for me because I have stopped panicking about this sort of thing and just learned to go with the flow...it'll all work out :)

Ok, Sunday Resolutions: 

I love the first day of the week because I feel like its a fresh start.  Why wait til the new year?  I make resolutions like once a week.  This week's resolution:  Speak less English.  See, I am in a study abroad program in a  specialized language school within a French university.  I don't have classes with any French kids, so it is kinda difficult to meet people, and it is SO easy to just speak English with the 50 other americans that are here.  But i will not get where I want to go with my French if I continue to do this.  So NO MORE!  I will start joining things, to meet French people and volunteering and I have a language buddy now.  This is just going to be a matter of determination.  I will read more French I will watch more French I will look up more words I don't know and review my verbs so i don't get stuck on the same ones every time.  I will make even more of an effort to speak to my host family.  I want to be fluent, i have 3 months to do it, and I've heard that's all it takes.  But I don't have ANY time to waste...so here we go. 

Ce ete ma semaine, that was my week.  I'm growing as a person...but my french growth seems a little stunted (tho my host mom says i'm doing a lot better, and i can see some improvement)  But my life is a work in progress, and its time for me to stop slacking...but first i need to clean my room.

Feeling Small, but it's not a bad thing...Blog 5

Standing at the base of a mountain will never ever make you feel big, that's just a fact.  And though I saw some amazing mountains today I want to write about another feeling, a feeling that is just like standing at the base of a mountain, but I didn't really feel small in size, I felt small in time...

I have discovered my favorite part of Europe.  I came here to learn the language, but that is not what captured my heart, it's the history.  I've never been a big history buff, but here it inescapable.  The past of this continent is built into the walls I live in and every single day it forces me to think about things that are bigger than myself.  I walk through a little German town and catch a glimpse of the ruins of a wall that used to surround the town in the middle ages and I am reminded to be thankful for safety.  It makes you think about what it is like to live a life that is so dangerous and fraught with peril (sorry, I'm reading Lord of the Rings, I couldn't resist) that you are confined to your city by stone walls.  And you have to trust those stone walls with your life.  Then I walk down the cobble stone roads that pave Europe and I think about what it must have been like to have to wear long dresses and heels all the time and not have the freedom to wear pants and tennis shoes like I do today.  I think about all the people that have walked those roads, what their lives were like, what they thought about, what they wished for.  Then I see medieval castles complete with torture dungeons and all, and I am shocked again and again by the atrocity that humanity is capable of.  But I turn around and see a cathedral, and wonder how people could be capable of such evil and such beauty at the same time.  The cathedrals are the biggest inspiration and attestation to human creativity that I have ever seen.  And still along the same street the memorials, monuments and grounds where massacres took place scream "Don't repeat this, learn from this place! Don't let the bloodshed be in vain."  In the time line of life, I feel so small, it is humbling to think that after everything that has happened here, I am walking on these streets that are soaked with history to get to school, trying to earn credits. 

What they don't tell you. Blog 4

When people talk about what an amazing experience studying abroad is, they never seem to feel the need to warn you about how hard it is going to be.  Today was orientation, and pretty much was like starting college all over again.  Being best friends with everybody just so you can all be lonely together, feeling awkward in the cafeteria, getting lost in the building, getting lost on campus, getting lost trying to get back to the house, its more disorienting despite it being called orientation.  But that is something I've done before, so I know the feeling will pass.  

But there are still other aspects of study abroad that moving away to college could never prepare you for.  Like how to use a key that looks like it came out of an old movie.  And learning to shower in a bath tub with a sprayer not mounted on the wall and not soaking the whole bathroom in the process, more than once.  Getting used to the food, although that hasn't been too hard, the most difficult part is trying to fit way more of the good food in my stomach than usual.  And then there are the living arrangements.   My family is great, but there is just something about not being able to communicate that makes you a little lonely.  Trying to keep up with the conversation is hard enough, and there is nothing more embarrassing than realizing someone asked you a question, because everyone is staring blankly at you waiting for an answer, but you don't have a clue what the question is.  Talk about a humbling experience.  Ha, I don't even know the word for humble in French.  Its just little things like having to carry everything you bought from the grocery store home because you forgot they don't give you bags, or not knowing the proper etiquette for anything and making dumb mistakes that are the toughest part.  

Of course, I can say all of this now that I've been officially studying abroad for a day.  I don't think I've even hit culture shock yet but I felt inclined to tell you what no one else seems to want to share about their experience.  Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to be here.  I know that so many people wouldn't recommend this program unless it was really worth it.  The things you work the hardest for are the things that become most valuable.  So here I am.  Ready to work hard, and expect a great outcome.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

For Love of Family and Ice Cubes :) Blog 3

I’ve never been a big “ice person.” I hated when fast food places loaded up your drink with ice because it would water down the pop. If a drink came out of the fridge I never put ice cubes in my drink, and if the drink were sitting on the counter I would use 2 ice cubes in a small cup and 3 in a large cup, no more than that. My Opa (German for Grandpa) never used ice and my parents told me that people in Europe don’t either, so I figured I would fit right in.

What they failed to mention was the fact that not only do the Europeans not use ice, they don’t refrigerate their drinks either and they drink everything (even milk sometimes) room temperature. This didn’t bother me for the first week and a half, but then I started to crave cold water, cold juice and cold milk, and I began to agree with Jesus when he said “If you are lukewarm I will spit you out of my mouth.” But I didn’t want to let these little cultural differences annoy me, so I did my best to ignore it although warm water doesn’t do much to quench your thirst.

Warm water aside, the food in Germany has been amazing! And the best part is that since I have so much family in Germany we are eating ALL home cooked meals. It has been great getting to know so many friends of my grandparents and hearing stories about my grandparents when they were much younger. I learned a lot about my family history this week, but it was also a little hard sometimes too. My Oma (Grandma) passed away a few years ago and this week I ate foods that only she made, and they tasted just like hers. I heard all kinds of stories about her, how amazing she was, and that she was all the nieces and nephew’s favorite aunt. There were even pictures of her and Opa on the wall in the nursing home of the man who introduced my grandparents. Over all, it was tough, because I miss her a lot and everything in Germany seemed to remind me of her, but she is with Jesus now and there is no better place to be.

We spent a large portion of the week with Oma’s niece and her husband. They have always been very close with my grandparents and they are so fun to be around! They speak English, which was nice because I don’t understand German, so they translated a lot for me and over the course of a few days I began to feel like I had known them my whole life. We had our final dinner in this part of Germany in their house and of course, the food was incredible. Frieda has hosted many American families because they were missionaries years ago and she noticed that there was one thing that Americans always seemed to miss on the mission field and in Germany, and she also noticed that I am no different from all these other Americans. So she put the food on the table and went back into the kitchen. I heard a familiar cracking noise and she returned with a giant pitcher full of water and ice! “Just for Courtney!” She said.   It was one of the best glasses (well, multiple glasses) of water that I have every had. Gotta love family, and ice cubes 

Has Assumed Everyone Knew (and you know what they say...) Blog 0

So after writing Blog 1 and 2 it was brought to my attention that some details about my trip were not clear, so this will be a very short explanation of what i'm doing in Europe.

I've wanted to study abroad for a few years now, mainly to master the French language.  I finally got the chance, and now here I am, in France.  

I will be here for 4 months, August 15-December 20, 128 Days.  

The first month will be spent travelling: 3 weeks with my mom and grandma, and 1 week with my school group, we are going to see a lot of France, Switzerland, and Germany (and we snuck a trip to Italy in today)

The next three months i will be living with a host family and going to school at the University de Pau et les Pays Ardor, taking TONS of French classes.  My blogs are my way of keeping in touch with people :)

Guess that is about all you need to know,

Feel free to ask questions if you have any!

The Trouble with Travelling, Blog 2

So I thought I'd share some of our wacky adventures with you, because we have yet to travel by train or plane without chaos following us and wreaking havoc on our sanity.  

Plane 1, Pittsburg to Paris:  We arrive at the airport and are all very nervous.  We say our goodbyes and hop in the security line right as i realize that my liquids are not in a plastic baggie.  To give you some background here, I have packed 1 full size suitcase and 2 carry ons to last me an ENTIRE semester, which is 4 months, or 128 days.  So that was difficult enough, but then to realize that the ONE thing I forgot was an item that could prevent us from even getting to France was terrible.  Thankfully, Dad was still there and he found me a bag, disaster avoided.  So then, I'm still so frazzled about the bag that when I take out my laptop and liquids, I forget that I am wearing a belt, BZZZZZ! Oops, I take off the belt (and my watch, just for good measure).  BZZZZZZZZZZZ (the airplane guy looks mad) It was my cell phone :o and i finally make it through.  I look over and Mom is being frisked cuz she keeps beeping and they can't figure out why! They searched her for like 10 minutes, poor mom.  The rest of the trip went ok, we caught our connection and slept kinda ok on the plane, and 8 hrs later, we were in France :)

Plane 2, Paris to Pau:  We make sure to not make any of the same dumb security mistakes as the first time so we don't irritate the airport workers again.  All goes well until Mom discovers that in France you can only bring 100ml of liquid in a carry on, so her 4 Oz bottles of Hair gel, wrinkle release spray and Victoria secret hair product are not allowed to go.  Mom was extremely distraught and pleaded with the airplane guy to find a way to let her keep these liquids because these are things we couldn't live without (and the Victoria Secret stuff was BRAND NEW and not cheap).  So the airport security guy (who was actually very nice) told us that if we had checked a bag that was under the weight limit we could add a carry on and it would not cost extra.  Nana's bag had weighed the least, it was 19kg and the limit was 24kg. So we had to make her carry on weigh 5kg or less.  We took out a bunch of stuff and put mom's liquids in and sure enough, it weighed only 4 kg :) We were thrilled, until we went to check it and found out that this was not true and if we wanted to check an extra bag it would cost 55 EUROS!!! Yikes.  We explained the problem and practically the whole French airplane service team was making phone calls and having discussions trying to figure out how to help us. Finally, they decided to pull Nana's suitcase off the plane and let us put the liquids inside and recheck it.  This all occurred 20 minutes before boarding time on the plane.  Need list to say, we were very stressed waiting for that bag to come back.  But sure enough, it came back and we saved the liquids!!!

Plane 3 Pau to Nice:  We were determined to have a good flight this time, because the others had not gone well at all.  My host mom was coming to pick us up at the hotel at 7:15 to take us to the airport, and we wanted to make sure we were really ready so i set the first alarm for 5:15 on my new french phone.   Before going to sleep I noticed that the time on my cell was wrong (I had just got the thing a few hrs before) and I figured out how to change it.  It was 10:13 and the French read military time, so I smartly changed the phone to 20:13, and didn't think about it again.  We were so tired, we slept and slept, I was finally getting used to the fact that French hotels do not have clocks in them.  The hotel phone rang right next to my head and I rolled over, out of my dreams, and picked it up and slammed it back down, assuming that my mom had ordered a wake up call.  Then it rang again, but before I had a chance to hang up, I heard a voice on the other end.  It was a man saying "Cecile is waiting for you in the lobby" in a French accent.  I jumped out of bed, it was 7:15, and my phone alarm went off.  I obviously can't read military time very well and I had set the clock wrong.  In 20 minutes we were packed, dressed, and in the car on the way to the airport.  We made it just in time, and all was well.  

Train 1, Nice to City in Italy:  All this brings me to today.  We went off itinerary to explore a little town in Italy, it was only a 45 minute train ride away!  Of course, once we got to the train station, we realized that none of us had taken a train before, ever.  We stood in line to get our EuRail passes validated, then stood in a line to get tickets, but we didn't need to be in that line.  We went to one platform to catch a train that was delayed, but it was already gone. Then we stood at another to try to find another train going to the same place.  The schedule was hard to read, and in French, and we had to catch a connecting train, but we finally made it.  The way back was even worse, we got on the train but there were so many people that every seat was taken and people were standing in the aisles WAY to close for comfort.  It was hot and smelly and awful, and we stood for almost the whole 45 minute trip.  Finally we arrived and dashed off the plane to breath the fresh air!

But the whole time no one had ever asked to see our passes, very strange, the train runs on the honor system.  Its like "The Honesty Train" or something.  And we never had to show our passports, it was so weird.

But in between all the stress, and the mistakes, and the chaos, we have seen some WONDERFUL places, and had SO much fun!  And every time we screw up we learn something new, and try not to make the same mistake twice and not panic when things seem bad.  So we are enjoying ourselves very much :) and learning a lot too :)  Sorry this was so long, I guess I like the read of my writing too much haha!

"What's the French Word for Blog?" Blog 1

So I've been in France 3 days, and learned that Europe is not as different as I thought it would be in most ways, and totally different in ways i didn't expect.

I spent the first day in Paris, and the next two in Pau.  I didn't enjoy Paris, after our flight leaving the USA at 3 pm and landing in Paris at 8 am, i was really tired from jet lag, and my french was really rusty from 3 months off of school.  In the Charles de Gaulle Airport everybody was bilingual, i didn't even try to speak French.  But as soon as we tried to take the shuttle to our hotel we found out the driver did not speak English.  All the sudden all responsibility was on me to communicate and it was HARD! But we finally made it to our hotel.  We toured the Luxembourg Gardens and saw the Pantheon in Paris, I was very disappointed that we could not see the Eiffel Tower from that area.  It was rainy and freezing cold, and we were so tired.  I ordered our food in French and asked for directions to the places in Paris and it was a stretching experience for me.  The places we saw were beautiful but we were a little to miserable to enjoy it fully, but we will be back :)

I was in bed by 8:00 and up at 5:30 to be at the airport and catch a plane to Pau.  We got off the plane and met my host mom, in France you greet people by kissing on each cheek, and its def something to get used to, but i kinda like it.  I met the family, Cecile (the mom), Phillip (the dad) Helene (the daughter, 22) Paul (the son, 19) and Clement (the other son, 14)  I found out how bad my French really was that day.  I barely understand anything and can barely communicate, but God knows i'm trying.   I listen really hard and think and speak, and the whole process makes me dizzy.  My family is very funny, they have a wonderful sense of humor which is great bc i know i'm gonna have to be able to laugh a lot to stay sane.  

Today we visited Berritz which is a beautiful town on the coast of the atlantic ocean.  I'm getting used to everything and my french has gotten better all ready, i'll be sorry to leave, but we are off to Nice tomorrow.  

I've tried to think about the weirdest thing about Europe to write about.  I wanted to share what was most difficult for me, and that for sure, is the bathrooms.  For starters, the light switch is always very difficult to find so sometimes i don't even bother.  And if it is a public bathroom, sometimes it isn't even free. I had to pay .40 Euros to use the bathroom in the Luxembourg Gardens.  Then there is the problem of finding the device that flushes the thing, buttons, handles, everything imaginable.  And so far nothing has thrown me as much as the bathroom style, but i'll get used to it.  

So that was the bad thing, and I wanted to mention something good.  The French are awesome :)  We have not run into a single rude French person.  They have been so helpful, and gone out of their way to help us.  They have smiled and put up with my french and corrected me.  I have ABSOLUTELY no idea where the rude french person stereotype comes from.  I really have never met more friendly people with better customer service (of course, i really haven't been to the inner parts of Paris yet).  But over all, they are amazing and i'm very happy to be living here among them.  Well it is getting late, and mom needs the computer, i'll write more later.