L'Ile de Porquerolles (Porquerolles Island)

Friday at 3:30 p.m. my fall vacation, of a week and a half, began! This break was much anticipated, although school is not that overbearing. A sense of freedom always comes with vacation time, though. I'll start with Saturday's activities then move to Sunday's trip which gives this post its title.

Saturday Paul and Cara came over for lunch. My host mom has had vacation time and was home Saturday morning so she said I should see if Paul and Cara wanted to come eat over here. It was funny to show Cara and Paul their future home (since we'll all be switching with the same families). We had a delicious lasagna for lunch and for dessert my host mom made a tart of mirabelles. Mirabelles are a small fruit, like a mini plum, that are found in regions of France, particularly Alsace. I had forgotten that Saturday was a special day. This Saturday was the 24th of October, marking my two months in France. My host mom had not only made a tart but also a lot of little chocolate cakes. She put a candle in two of the cakes and put some halloween cookies I made (Deborah sent her mom Halloween cookie cutters and sprinkles since these are not easily found in France) around the cakes. It was a wonderful little display perfect for representing the festivities of this month. After eating this large lunch the three of us watched a movie and hung out at my house.

The time changed Saturday night, actually Sunday morning at 3 a.m. It went back an hour, so at seven the next morning (when I woke up) I thought it was six. The reason I woke up at this ghastly hour is because there was a Rotary District rendez-vous at Porquerolles Island. The island is about an hour drive away from Cavalaire. I rode with Cara and her host family which is composed of her host parents and brother. We ended up leaving a little after 8 and missed the 9 o'clock boat that all the other exchange students and rotarians went on. But, no worries! The second boat left at 10 so we got to spend a little time looking at a fort near the port. We arrived on the picturesque island and walked a long, long while to find our group. I've found that I really enjoy just walking. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. A lot of the walk was on a path lined with tall trees. We saw some olive tree fields and some fruit tree fields. After meeting up with everyone, we walked along some of the coast of the island. I've never seen such clear water. It was the perfect shade of blue-green. We ate our picnic lunches and afterwards walked some more. I saw several of the beaches of Porquerolles, le Moulin du Bonheur (the Windmill of Happiness), and le Fort Sainte-Agathe. A day well-spent.

A few things are planned for les vacances so we'll see how this week plays out. Bonne journee tout le monde.

Rendez-vous a Marseille

I skipped school today! But it was a necessity. Today was my visit at the doctor's office in Marseille for my visa. I slept in a little late, and after my breakfast and morning routine, my host mom and I left. We stopped a little before Toulon at the centre commercial that I visited the other week. This was about the halfway point of our journey. We decided to take advantage of our morning by doing some shopping. I was in desperate need of a heavy coat. I didn't bring too many winter clothing items because they're bulky in a suitcase, and I figured I'd do some shopping once I got here. I'm now happy to say that I have a coat for winter and another lighter jacket, a shirt, a hat, and a scarf. Alors the morning was a success. We grabbed sandwiches at a kiosk in the mall (mine was tomato, mozzarella, and pesto on olive bread... so good!) and then were back on our way.

By a gracious stroke of luck we found the road that the Office of Immigration and Integration is located on. Marseille is a very big city. I didn't get to see too much of it today though. Oh, did I mention it was raining today? That will come into play later...

So we found the office and went up to the counter, checked in.. blah blah blah. I waited and waited. A lot of Americans were there. A group of young adults, I think with a university, were there together. I talked to a guy from Morocco that was coming to a university in France. I had to get a chest x-ray (which I got to keep as a souvenir :D). Then, I had a visit with the doctor and talked to him for a minute. Following was a talk with a nurse who weighed me, took my height, and gave me a little eye exam. A routine check-up. I'm healthy! Thank goodness, or else they would have not let me stayed. We returned to the receptionist to wrap everything up. Unbeknownst to me was the fact that I was supposed to bring a passport photo for my form. My host mom overlooked this too so we had to go to the nearest metro stop to one of the photo booths. This was easier said than done because it was absolutely POURING down rain. It was ridiculously funny how much it was raining. Thankfully the metro stop was just at the end of the street, not too far away. We stepped out into the sheet of rain, and in seconds we were both completely soaked. The wind was hammering the bullets of water into our faces. I gave up on avoiding puddles after my shoes became filled with water. We both just started laughing as it came down harder and harder on us. After asking a few people if we were heading in the right direction, we made it to the shelter of the underground. I took a lovely picture looking like a wet dog, but it was just for my medical paper so I wasn't too concerned. I think I have five more copies of it though. We traversed back to the office, trailing water behind us and finished everything. Back into the rain we went to get to the car. The water was just up to the bottom of the car door when we returned. I quickly hopped in, and my host mom blasted the heat to dry us off and keep us warm. I don't mind being in the rain... what I hate is the feeling of my jeans being soggy and stuck too me. I took my shoes off when I got in the car and poured a little water out of them. The jeans, however, I was stuck in. The traffic was a little heavier on the way back home. We left right around five o'clock and got home at about seven thirty. The sky was gray from the beginning of the trip home and then turned black a little before seven. The rain came and went. Right before coming into Cavalaire from Toulon there is a long stretch of road that winds around the coastline. It is an absolutely beautiful drive with perfect ocean views from the tall cliffs above. It's a bit scary on a bus... it's a little less than terrifying in a car when the visibility is almost zero because of the thunderstorm. I was a bit on edge in the wet darkness, but I made it back in one piece.

Tonight on the news one of the stories was about the terrible rain in the south of France today, particularly Marseille.

Cinema des Antipodes

School this week has been wonderful because one full day (Tuesday) was spent on a field trip in St. Tropez, and this morning (Friday) I went again to St. Tropez. Why, you might ask. Because the Antipodes film festival has been happening this week and into the weekend. My class (Premier L-for litterature) got to go all day Tuesday with our English teachers to the Australian/New Zealand film festival happening. Tuesday we watched 17 short films which were all very interesting. Only one or two of the films were not to my liking. Tuesday mornings are one of the market days in St. Tropez too so I got to see a little of that. After the morning half of the films we went to an exposition of photographs from an Australian explorer back in the day. The photos were from an exploration in the South Pole. An Australian visual artist was there showing her own photographs from an expedition on a Russian icebreaker. She's studying global warming and the melting icebergs. I was enthralled... I know think I'm gonna have to go Antarctica or the Arctic Circle. Following was lunch with a group of friends in my class on some of the large rocks by the sea.. quite beautiful! After it was back to viewing which I was happy to do.

Thursday was the first day of real cold here. It was rainy and in the 50s... I definitely felt the change in temperature, but I'm excited for the new season. I need to buy a good coat though. Haha, back to Toulon!

Today, we went again to St. Tropez. We watched a longer film (an hour and half) accompanied in the theater by Anthony LaPaglia-the actor who plays Special Agent Jack Malone in the tv show "Without a Trace." I got his autograph after. The movie was very touching. It was about a strange man who shows up in this town on the coast of Australia. He ends up spending time with these two twin children and their family. The twin girl ends up dying and her brother must cope with the loss, and then there were other little plots and connections. After that film we changed buildings to watch a documentary of an adventurer, John Muir, and his lone traverse across Australia. He went only with his Jack Russel terrier, Seraphine. I absolutely loved the documentary. It made me realize even more that I want to do something with the environment.. he lived solely off the land, taking minimal supplies. Very inspirational! I went back to school to eat lunch, but I didn't have any classes this afternoon (normally I just have English, and my English teacher stayed in St. Tropez with the second group of students).

My day only continued to get better. When my host mom picked me up from the bus stop she told me that a package had come from my sister. Lauren told me that she mailed me a package last week so I've been expecting it. I'm so fortunate to have Lauren as my big sister and role model... this is what all my wonderful sister sent me: a Michael Jackson t-shirt (haha I started cracking up when I unfolded it-I can't wait to wear it), a Furman Tri-Delta t-shirt (it's extremely cute), two Twilight saga magazines giving on the scoop on New Moon (plus they had posters that are now hanging up in my room-I now sleep under Robert Pattinson's beautiful face), an Orbit BigPak in my favorite flavor (spearmint), two really cool picture-like things she made for me with quotes on them, a singing Halloween card with Halloween stickers :D, a pack of cute pens, the movie Dazed and Confused (thanks!), and the book The Time Traveler's Wife (she just finished reading it) with a really cool bookmark that she made me. So basically it was the best thing ever. I love you Lauren!! I'm working on a package for you, but I only have one thing so far.. I'll get on that :D So that's all for this week... if anything interesting happens this weekend I'll be sure to post.

L'automne (Autumn)

The weather was absolutely wonderful this Sunday. I've entitled this post Autumn because the temperature seems to be dropping some as we move further into October. I've never had a favorite season because as one ends I'm ready for the next one to begin. I love it when the seasons change, and although I'm sure we're still going to have a few more scorching days here, I'm beginning to feel giddy as the wind blows more, and I can put on more layers of clothes.

This morning my host mom and I went to the Sunday market in Croix Valmer which is another town over. The markets here are filled with venders selling everything from clothes to cheese. Typical France. On one side there are men calling all the women mademoiselle so they'll buy a piece of jewelry and on the other there are five different types of provencal olives. It's great. I definitely had a relaxing day today. After the market we returned, and I did some homework. Then lunch and then a stayed for about two hours by the pool. The water was pretty chilly but lying in the sun with the perfect weather was amazing.

Yesterday I went again to Toulon. Well actually I went right before Toulon to le centre commercial. This was the destination Cara, Paul, and I attempted to find last time but didn't. This time we had a native friend with us. We ate at a pizzeria near the movie theater that boasted a large billboard for New Moon. (I can't wait!) After lunch we went to the shopping center and spent some time browsing in stores. Cara and I got really excited when we found the Sephora. Poor Paul had to patiently wait while we ooed and awed over all the pretty makeup. After the first shopping center we had to walk with our friend to catch her bus. Before the bus stop we visited the McDonald's (they call them Macdo in France). We went for McFlurry's. My topping was CaramBar which is little caramel crumbles. It was pretty good. MacDo is definitely nicer looking in France but overall quite similar. After that excursion we went to the other shopping center in the same area and went to a few stores. I bought some shirts (and a little makeup at Sephora) and Paul and Cara got a few items. We took the bus and arrived back home. My host grandparents left to go back to Alsace today so last night they ate at our house. We had a crepe night. I love crepe nights. My host mom has this little crepe grill that she puts in the center of the table. Everyone has their own little spatula and all the toppings are out on the table. Before living here I had just had crepes for desert, but they eat them for meals. I really like Munster cheese in my crepe. Salad is good too. And then we have nutella and jelly and other stuffings for sweeter crepes. It's definitely a fun dinner.

Life is good for me. The weather has me happy. The vegetation here stays the same for the most part in the winter. Deciduous trees are not common in this area. I'll miss the changing of the colors, but I am happy that I get to have these beautiful plants flourishing even in the cold parts of the year. I will enjoy all the green.

Beaucoup de choses (a lot of things)

I decided to wait for the end of the weekend to do more of a mass post. This week was just school as usual. I really enjoy school now. I love my friends so much! Wednesday was my first rock climbing lesson. Paul, Cara, Clare, and I got schooled by some 13 year olds that are like spiderman. It's so much fun, though. It's the four of us and five others. I'm really excited for next Wednesday.

This weekend was actually pretty busy. Friday, Eva (a friend from school that lives in the next town over) came to Cavalaire. Paul, Cara, Cara's host brother and his friends, Eva, and I went to La Salle des Fetes for the 80th anniversary of Cavalaire soiree. A d.j. was there, who was actually pretty good, but we did not stay long. I was embarrassed to even go in. This "soiree" was the exact replica of a middle school dance. The refreshments were lined up on the tables at one side of the room. 14 year old girls were standing on one side while the adults and some guys were standing on the other. All in all, not good. I kind of expected it to be a bit lame though so I wasn't too disappointed. We all decided to walk around the port and hang out around the beach for most of the night. That seems to be a favorite activity of ours... walking around. I guess that's typical though. I was so exhausted Friday night, but I added to the exhaustion by getting up early Saturday morning. Why did I get up early Saturday morning, you might ask...

Saturday we went to St. Tropez with some Rotarians to meet with all the exchange students in our French Rotary District. A sailboat race was taking place on the beautiful Mediterranean, which means that St. Tropez was packed with people. After finally finding a parking spot, we met up with the other exchange students. Our group consists of a Japanese girl, an Indian girl, four other American girls (not including Cara and me) and another American boy (not including Paul). A nice sized group. Everyone is very nice and easy to get along with. We lucked out. St. Tropez was fun. Everyone brought a lunch, and we found a nice spot on the beach to have a little picnic. After some good conversations and laughter, we all walked around St. Tropez for a while window shopping and eating good ice cream before going our separate ways. I really like how involved Rotary keeps us. It's nice to have all the activities and connections with people. Saturday also made me realize even more how thankful I am to have Paul and Cara. Everyone is alone in their town except for two of the girls. I love being in the same town and school with these two, though. The three of us are already so close. I don't know how we got so lucky because we get along incredibly. This experience has bonded the three of us together :D

Saturday night I went with my host parents and my host mom's parents (they have a vacation house here) down to La Maison de la Mer to watch les artifices (fireworks) for the 80th anniversary. Something about fireworks just makes me giddy. I love the big banging sounds and the bright colors exploding in the sky. Just magical! I tried to get some good pictures but none of them turned out to be worth anything. After the fireworks, I (again) walked around the port and town with my host parents and grandparents. Yesterday my host mom explained to me that there is a German town that celebrates the customs of Cavalaire and vice versa at a certain time. Apparently, that's this weekend. Many Germans are here to share some of their culture with our town. German musicians were playing in the streets last night... very cool. And last night, there was an Elvis impersonator, ironically, at a restaurant on the port. I'm pretty sure he was British because he didn't seem to speak too much French. Very funny!

Today the weather was absolutely perfect. A nice wind has been blowing (which is good at night because I hear the ocean even more clearly). My host grandparents took us out to lunch at a Provencal restaurant with a great view of the ocean. We ate for three hours; well we talked too. I know all my blogs are about food, but I have to document this gastronomical experience. First, everyone got a little coffee cup with a fish bisque. After, I had this puff pastry with goat cheese (I forgot the French name, but I'll ask because I'll need to be eating this when I return to the U.S.) and salad. My main course was a delicious fish in a sauce with some sort of potato-ish vegetable. The fish was brought out in its own little pot. Everyone got a slice of cheese after that, that looked like a piece of cake. Finally, I had my dessert. It was called la peche melba and was a giant cup filled with vanilla-bean ice cream, a large chunk of peach, raspberry sauce, and whipped cream. Fantastic! One coffee and three hours later, we were finished. I love France! We took a nice walk along the beach afterwards. Again I must say, perfect weather today. The wind made me want to go sailing. After seeing all the sailboats in St. Tropez and out on the sea today, I really must have a hand at it... hopefully soon.

I think the Autumn weather is starting to make its way to the south of France. It gets really cool at night now. I always like the changing seasons. I don't have a favorite. I always enjoy when one ends and another begins. I think the weather has had me in a good mood. I absolutely adore sleeping with my window open with the cool breeze. I do have to say, I was looking through some photos today, and I miss my family a good bit. I'm definitely settled in here and feel very much at home, but I will be excited when they come visit (even though it's a long way away). I love y'all and all my friends too! Alright, bonne nuit. I have to get some sleep for school tomorrow.