Toulon

French is actually getting easier to speak and comprehend! I am so excited! I'm very tired tonight but also in an incredible mood.. mostly due to the fact that I changed classes at school today, and now I am with some of my friends in Premier L. It's great because I speak more French now that I have my friends to talk to. My schedule changed so now I take a lot more French, history, English, Spanish, and then just a little math and science. I know it will help me learn French faster because I have my friends to talk to and a lot more reading and writing. I'm definitely thinking this is a step up.

Saturday was my eventful day of the weekend (as usual). Paul, Cara, and I went to Toulon which is a two euro, two hour bus ride. Isn't that great? Two euros for the bus... very cheap. The plan was to go with some French friends too-since they actually know they're way around Toulon a bit-to go shopping, but instead it was just the three Americans lost in Toulon. Don't worry Mom, we weren't really lost. We got off the bus at the Gare Routiere, the main bus stop in Toulon with the train station right next to it. The city was very beautiful, or at least the part I saw. The buildings are all very picturesque-old, tall, pastel colors with iron rails on the windows. We sat down at a cafe for lunch and after eating and talking took a stroll through some of the streets of Toulon. We made our way down to the port and saw, yet again, some beautiful, gigantic boats. These French Riviera towns just reek of them. After walking through a few port stores and such, we went back up the streets and found great window shopping entertainment. Several boutiques lined the narrow paths that lead to a center open space with a mini-garden. We found another cafe where we ordered coffee and crepes. In taking after the French, we sat at this cafe for a good hour or two talking about life and watching the people go by. I wore my beret-like hat. Ooo I felt so French. Back to the bus we went. Halfway through the return Cara and I had some fun singing Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls (what else?), always a fun option to pass time on a bus. All in all the day was very enjoyable with a lot of laughter among the three of us and some beautiful scenery (pictures to come for this post once Paul and Cara put them up on facebook, and I can take them off there).

Sunday was another relaxing day. Well the morning wasn't relaxing because Paul, Cara, Cara's host brother, and I went for a run on the Promenade sur la mer. After the misery of that was over, the rest of the day remained calm. We walked back on the beach, where I stayed for another three hours or so lying in the sun. For lunch I had an ice cream and a walk down the port. A good way to spend a Sunday afternoon... I highly recommend it to those who have the opportunity. Yesterday afternoon my host mom's parents arrived at their vacation house here. They came over for supper last night and are both extremely nice. They came bearing many gifts from their Alsacian home: cakes, wine, bread, fruits, the list goes on... I will enjoy getting to know them better, very much.

Alors, all in all it's been a good several days. Today I really felt like I could see the progress in my French which got me really excited! It's getting to where I will just start speaking French without having to translate the English to French first. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anywhere near fluent yet, but I'm getting better. I think that's everything for now though: Toulon, beach, class change... of course, there is more to come.

Un Mois (One Month)

Today I've been in France for one month! I feel like I've been here for a long time but a MONTH! A whole month has passed by, and it passes quickly. I'm much happier in school now because it's not all so confusing and new. I actually know what to expect, which is nice. Tomorrow I have a biology test... yikes! But I'm not too worried.

Yesterday, for my lovely Wednesday afternoon, I met up with Cara and Clare. We walked around our town for a while and took a few pictures.... then we met up with Paul at the gymnasium/sports complex. This town has so much to offer. The gymnasium is so nice, and Paul, Cara, Clare, and I signed up for rock climbing Wednesday afternoons. Next Wednesday will be our first. There are four or five climbing walls in the gym so it's a pretty nice size place. I think this weekend we're planning on going to Toulon to do some shopping (the bus is only 2 euros!), and the following weekend we're going on an outing with Rotary (I think a winery!). The next weekend, if this all goes as planned, I think we're going sailing with the sailing club here. Paul and Cara are both obsessed with sailing, and apparently I'm missing out so I figure we need to have a go.

Tonight after dinner, my host mom surprised me with a Tarte Tropezienne avec les framboises (raspberries). She put a candle on it and everything to celebrate my one month in France day! We both had some (my host dad doesn't really like desserts, isn't that odd?!). C'etait tres, tres bon! My host parents are so great!

Here's something interesting that I realized today... at school Paul and I both had an hour free period after lunch, and a girl in his class came and sat with us for the latter half of the break. The French think that most American high school girls are what they call "pom-pom girls." While Paul's friend asked me if I was a "pom-pom girl" I realized that Cara and I had gotten this question a lot. I think the French teenagers watch the stereotypical American high-school set films and think that the social classes of jock/cheerleader, punk, nerd, etc. are clearly outlined like that in all American high schools. Quite funny!

Another observation I made today on my way back from sport was that there are two places at my high school here where I am engulfed in a cloud of smoke. The first is outside the gate during the 15 minutes breaks at school. I had to walk through a thick fog of cigarette smoke on my way to sport today. There really are smoke breaks for the teenagers; a far-fetched concept for those of us who won't even see teachers smoke on school campus. I steer clear of that area during breaks, but it's inevitable if I'm going to gym. The second is in the girl's locker room after gym. I think spray deodorant is given out free in these French towns because EVERY girl in the locker room starts spraying it on right when her foot hit the tile floor. I embarrassingly pull out my solid deodorant while trying not to choke on the cloud of antiperspirant.

Well those are my random little tidbits of today. Tomorrow is Friday! Yay!

Le Jet Cup

I'm catching up from yesterday's news today. Today was just school... nothing special. But yesterday I was social :D

First of all, the weather yesterday was beautiful. After a week of treacherous downpour, the French Riviera sun returned to us! The temperature was perfect; cool in the shade and warm in the sunlight. I went into town at the beginning of the evening. I met some friends on the Promenade sur la Mer, and we found a place to watch the end of the Jet Cup. I can't remember if I've talked about the Jet Cup in my past few blogs, but it is the world Jet Ski tournament. It is help in my town because some wealthy man began having it hosted here several years ago. There are always activities and interesting things happening here even though it's a small town. So we watched the end of the Jet Cup and then walked around the port for a little bit before catching our movie. As we started down the port, we saw the simple thing that would entertain us for a chunk of time before the movie. Someone had put soap in the fountain on the port making a wonderful fluffiness of fun! I wanted to jump in the fountain and play in the bubbles so badly, but I resorted to scooping them up with my hands. After a few bubble wars and an ice cream we went to the theater to see "Final Destination 4." The tiny theater can only play one movie at a time, so the selection is limited. "Final Destination 4" was exactly like "Final Destination 1." I think the dialogue was even similar which was good for me because I could pick up on more of the French. It was actually quite amusing to watch a poorly made, gory thriller in French. That's all that happened yesterday. I feel like it was really eventful but hanging out with friends doesn't sound as exciting on a blog.

I really like my friends, a lot. They're all so nice! I wish they were in my class at school, and then everything would be flawless. School is good though, and I see my friends several times throughout the day. In my English class we're talking about Woodstock. Haha, I thought it was a random topic but, nevertheless, interesting. It's nice to comprehend what's happening in at least one class. I did get really frustrated today with not knowing what was being said. I just can't let it get to me though. I know the language will come; it's already getting better. I find myself forgetting English words and thinking only French ones instead. I'm being impatient though.

Well that's really all. Not too much happening right now. I think I'm making plans for Wednesday so hopefully something exciting will come along, and I can give you readers something worth your time. Tuesdays are my long days at school (8:30-5:30) so now it's bedtime. Night to all!

Le Gateau (Cake)

I haven't forsaken my blog; I just haven't had too much interesting information to write about. It has rained pretty much this whole week. And apparently this region hasn't seen this much rain in 50 years. Many of the coastal towns are flooded, and several streets have been closed. I think it will start clearing up tomorrow though. I have enjoyed the rain.

This week nothing spectacular happened. Just school. My free afternoon Wednesday was spent primarily hanging out with Cara and Paul. I feel like I have known them for my whole life, but it's only been a little over three weeks. The three of us just clicked from the very first time we met. I'm so glad to have them. This is truly a bonding experience for us.

Thursday night my host dad commenced with baking a cake for someone's birthday. He showed me all the steps for the actual cake part, and I watched him like a hawk, repeating the motions continuously in my head. Friday morning he made the cream for the cake and a syrup for a blend of fruit to go in. Friday night he cut the cake into two parts. Then he familiarly chopped kiwi, banana, peach, grapes, strawberries, and raspberries. The motions were so quick and graceful. He blended the fruits into the syrup and then took a pastry brush and painted the fruit blend onto the inside of each piece of cake. Next was the delicious cream. He globbed heaps of it onto cake and swiftly spread it out. I watched as he chopped more fruit, and the juices stained his hands. He blanketed the cream with the multicolored fruits and then laid the other half of the cake on top. Off went the cake to sit in the refrigerator for a night. He said the cake is better after waiting because the fruits have time to soak into the cream. This morning I woke up rather early, and mid-way through my breakfast my host dad came home for just a little bit to finish the cake. I watched as he made whipped cream and toasted almond slivers. Then he cut off the end of the cake and made two little cakes (one for me; one for my host mom). He spread the whipped cream on the top and sides of the cakes and then pressed the almonds around the edges. Following, he took the same fruits from the filling and made decorative slivers of each kind for the top. He cut slices of kiwi and peach so thin I thought they weren't there. He splayed out the strawberries and pressed them into the corners. What delicate craftsmanship! Did I mention my host dad used to be a pastry chef?? He finished the two little cakes and the big one. After wrapping up the big cake he took it with him and returned to work for the day. At lunch my host mom and I ate our pieces. Mmmm! C'etait parfait! Absolutely wonderful...

It rained some more this afternoon. This weekend is the world jet ski tournament in my town, but the rain has prevented me from watching the majority of it. Hopefully tomorrow I'll get to see some of the water sport action. I went into town this afternoon to meet up with some friends to celebrate one of their birthdays. After hanging out for a little bit in town, we went to a friend's (Clare) apartment. A few of us stayed and ended up playing Wii with each other and Clare's little sister. It was so much fun! Clare is British. So hearing her dad and little sister screaming words of encouragement in British and also translating the Wii instructions for the French friend playing was quite entertaining.

Now I just finished dinner. Oh one thing I need to mention.... the rain creates a lot of mist here that is incredibly beautiful when it's rising over the hills. It is breathtaking when the thin layers are seeping up into the tree line. I'll try and take a picture tomorrow that does it some justice if I can. Tomorrow night I think I'm meeting up with the same group of friends to go see "Final Destination 4" in the movie theater. Haha, that should be interesting in French!

La Belle Ville de Cannes (The Beautiful City of Cannes)

Last night I didn't get back to home until 11:30, hence the posting today. I really like Cannes. I didn't get to see too much, but what I saw, I liked. Yesterday Paul, Cara, and I went with our Rotary Club's president and two of his sons to a boat exposition. It was about a two hour drive of scenic beauty. This region of the country is so gorgeous. One minute we were passing by the Mediterranean, the next, rolling hills with vineyards. Plus this region has a special type of tree called le pin parasol that I find particularly beautiful. They dot the skyline constantly. Alors, we arrived in Cannes to the boat show. I've never seen so many GIGANTIC yachts in one place! Everywhere we looked there were the shiniest, newest boats. We walked to the section that was home to the biggest yachts. Mon Dieu! They were tremendous. I've seen houses smaller than these things. They are quite beautiful pieces of machinery, but I think perhaps a little excessive. I guess to each, his own, though. After meandering through the port, we went into the building that housed the booths from all the companies selling their products. We saw everything from bathroom appliances/faucets to boating-excuse me-yachting clothes. If you're going to have a yacht, you need to have the appropriate clothing, bien sur.

Apres the boat exposition we had a drink at a sidewalk cafe where we sat and talked for a good bit of time. Following was dinner at a pizzeria in Cannes that was INCREDIBLE! It was a tiny hole-in-the-wall restaurant which welcomes customers with a wood-fire oven right when they cross the threshold. We climbed a narrow staircase to our table and began looking over the menus. I had the vegeterienne pizza. Incroyable! For dessert, I had a coffee ice cream in a large glass with coffee and whipped cream. C'etait tres, tres bon! Halfway through the meal, a pair of Italian men sat down at the table next to us. I tried to listen as inconspicuously as I could, soaking up the beauty of the words. I'm definitely learning Italian.

School today. I was not looking forward to today, but it actually wasn't bad. School just continually gets better. Some people in my class actually seem to be warming up to me. A few were interested in talking to me and were nice. I am so anxious to be able to convey my thoughts. My classmates probably all think I'm just boring and quiet, but I honestly have a lot to say I just don't know how to say it. I will learn.

I've been in France three weeks today. I can't believe it. Three weeks! Next Monday will be a month... an ENTIRE month!! It's already going by so fast.

Alright well now it's time to finish up my homework, and afterwards hopefully find the TrueBlood Season 2 finale on the web (thank you internet streaming!). Oh fun fact-they don't know about s'mores in France. Perhaps that will be my next baking experience. I wonder if I can find graham crackers in the grocery store... peut-etre.

Le Beurre de Cacahuete (Peanut Butter)

Peanut butter is not a staple food item in France. Nutella, yes; peanut butter, no. However, yesterday my host mom and I went to Cogoglin after school so I could pick up two books I needed for my French class. After, we ran a few errands, one of which being a trip to the supermarket. I got to choose between two brands once we found the peanut butter, and they had crunchy and smooth. Oh how I have craved it. I didn't even realize I wanted peanut butter until we started talking about it here. After dinner last night I had an apple with peanut butter. One of my favorite snacks! Today, I cleaned out the jar by making peanut butter cookies. Making cookies was a perfect evening activity, combining two of the loves of my life: baking and peanut butter! My host parents do not particularly like le beurre de cacahuete but they applauded me on my cookies saying they were "pas mal" (not bad). They couldn't taste too much of the pb which was good for them.

Tonight I went and saw a French movie. Haha, but not some dark, romantic, bizarre film (that's the image I always get when I hear French movie). It was actually some pre-teen movie about a boy who moves from one town and school to another. I guess it was fitting for me to go see it because I had to get my host mom to drop me off at the theater. That took me back to the Middle School years :D I really like the theater here. It is downstairs in La Maison de la Mer, which has bathrooms and the Office of Tourism in it. The theater only plays one movie at a time because it's just one room. I love small theaters, though.

Tomorrow I get to go to a nautical exhibit in Cannes with some Rotarians. I'm pretty excited and will definitely blog about it. School has gotten better. I know my way, more or less, around the buildings, and I'm happier with everything in general. Oh, I meant to blog about something that happened the other day (this is really random, nothing to do with school). We have some neighbors that have a vacation home here. They come for the summers and also for various weeks throughout the year. They are from Germany and have been friends with my host parents for over decade now, I think. Before heading back to Germany, they came by to say goodbye to my host parents. My host mom grew up in Alsace which has a strong dialect with a lot of German mixed in. She took German throughout school and can still speak it now. So when our neighbors came by they spoke in French and German and also English with my host mom and me; let me clarify, they spoke in French and English with me, I know no German! It took all that I had not to gawk as our company switched between three languages. Without thinking they'd response in one language and begin a conversation in the next. Quite amazing. Hearing this conglomeration of words stirred my language passion even more. I am now determined to fully know at least one more language after French, preferably two or three more. I think Spanish then Italian will be my next victims. Who knows? But I'm going to be at least trilingual.

I guess that's all for now. Cannes' blog will most likely have some pictures and hopefully some exciting events. Bonne nuit!

Mercredi (Wednesday)

I do believe that Wednesdays will become my favorite days in France (along with Saturdays and Sundays too). Wednesdays are half days at school. It's such a reward to have only a half day of school every week. It's like dessert after supper weekly, not just for special occasions. Wednesdays will also be a good time for blogging since Tuesday is my long day at school with Monday only an hour shorter. I feel like I can get much accomplished on these beloved afternoons.

Also, I think for the sake of all my faithful readers, Wednesday is a good day to write about the beginning of my week. My four hours at school has put me in a much more cheerful mood which is bound to result in an optimistic spin on the hardships I've faced these couple of days. School was good today. I found myself dreading the two hours of math that awaited me this lovely morning, but those two hours were surprisingly comforting. Math is a bit easier to understand than some of my other subjects here because it's primarily numbers. I was happy to find that what we covered today was something that I've already learned and remembered. In fact, I'm quite sure that everything I'll do this year in math is something that I've already covered; now, it's just a matter of remembering. Hopefully, I'll be able to think back to my days of Mrs. Llew screaming "Oh my stars!" and remember what math lesson had gotten her so excited for the hour. After math I had French and ended with physics/chemistry (we're starting with chemistry though). Overall, a good morning.

School is difficult though. I'd love to sugar-coat things, but since the hard times are just as important in this process I have to be honest. Monday and Tuesday were very trying. I found myself craving the familiar. I wanted my home, my family, my friends, my English! Scattered throughout those days I felt that pang of homesickness that tends to arise more frequently when I'm in a not-so-fun situation. Of course I'm so grateful to be here and would not forsake this opportunity for anything, but I can't help but feeling alone. The schoolwork is frustrating because it is all in French, of course, and I feel like I've had all of it but have just forgotten so much. I need to dust off the cobwebs that formed in my head this summer. I think once I got the mentality of "hey, I'm finished with high school" I let some information slip. This year will definitely be good preparation for college, though. School is also socially very frustrating. Before school began, Paul, Cara, and I, talked about how we thought it was going to be so easy to meet people and make friends because at our schools people are always interested in the exchange student. We always love to get to know the foreign kids and all the aspects of their cultures. Apparently this is not the French mentality. Instead, I've found myself with people who are not mean but are not friendly. I feel like everyone in my school has their own group of friends and isn't going to bother with taking time out to try and understand the girl that doesn't speak French. And no I'm not just socially awkward; Paul and Cara are feeling the exact same thing. However, we stay with the same class all day, every day for the entire year. I think this will help. Monday and Tuesday I felt very alone and frustrated, but today, I've felt a surge of happiness. The students in my class are all younger than me, and I think that's one of several reasons why it's a bit difficult. I know that it will be easier to make friends within my class when I know French too, and one girl gave me her phone number. There is a group that's been kinder to me than the others. But my surge of happiness today came from my realization that I have many friends, not necessarily in my class, but in my school. It's a big help to have Paul and Cara. The three of us get along so well. We all just click. Also, I have several French friends that have introduced me to more of their friends. In the hallways and during our breaks I get several bisous (the cheek kissing thing) that reminds me these people are here for me even if my class is still warming up to me. I think as I get more acquainted with the school, things will become easier too. I'm already learning my way around the buildings, and one boy in my class today showed me where to go without me having to ask him. This made me very happy. He actually took the initiative to show me where to go. It was very kind.

I think my host mom has some sixth sense that tells her when school was rough because Monday she was practically shoving tarte tropizienne at me and last night we had crepes for dinner. Oh how this food can soothe my soul. I think the long, hard days I had at school are bringing me closer to feeling at home here, though. I'm always happy to get back to what I know in Cavalaire and in my house after school. I very much look forward to spending my afternoon/nightly time conversing with my host parents. I already feel like I can comprehend more which helps my speaking too. I'm anxious to know what to say when I feel like saying something, and to understand people when they first speak. I know I still have more time for that to come, but hopefully it will start picking up even more within the next few weeks.

I am happy to be here, and even though right now I'm in a bit of a rough patch I know things will start looking up. In fact they already are. I've have such a good day today, and I don't feel like I'm alone. The routine of school is actually nice to have, and the schoolwork will only help me progress in learning French. In fact, I already find myself saying French words automatically in my thoughts. For example, today I was thinking about something with the word because, and all I could think was parce que. It actually took me time to remember the English word. Very exciting! And when I talk to family/friends at home I find myself wanting to interject with d'accord, ouai, c'est vrai. Yay, it's catching on! Ok well now I have to prendre une douche (haha don't worry that means take a shower) and look over some Spanish homework (that should be interesting). I'm sorry if this post was a little unorganized with my ramblings; it's late here. A plus tard.

Le Relachement (Relaxation)

I feel like my time in France is just a perpetual vacation. The weekends in this warm, seaside town just seem like mini holidays dispersed between the work days. Again today, there were Polynesian festivities in my town. I don't know why or how they came here but here they were. I woke up fairly early this morning to join two of my friends down at La Maison de la Mer. The three of us were going to faire le pirogue, which is just canoeing in Polynesian boats. We put on our lifejackets, grabbed our paddles, and went off into the perfect green-blue water of the Mediterranean. Every other person paddled on the same side, and we switched when the man in the back made some chanting-like noise. As the power of paddles glided us through the water, I would gaze down into the sea below. The water was perfectly clear down to the floor of sand. I would have loved to capture the magnificence of that water with a picture, but I didn't bring my camera into the canoe. Too much water for my little piece of technology. After a lengthy row out into the sea, we returned to the sandy shore. A boy I met when we did l'accrobrance was waiting his turn to fly a seaplane, you know one of those planes with the pontoons on it that takes off and lands in the water. Those things are so cool! Too bad with Rotary I'm not allowed to operate anything with a motor. I would love to take lessons on how to navigate one of those.

After our Polynesian rendez-vous, we went to a bar/restaurant on the port and had a lovely cocktail. Don't worry it was non-alcoholic; it was still before noon! I ordered a fruity drink that came out with a souvenir flower for my hair. It was delicious!

The rest of the day I spent back at my house. My host mom bought something special this morning for us to have after lunch today. Le tarte tropizienne, a speciality of St. Tropez and this region. It is a fine little dessert, well actually big dessert, that looks like a giant hamburger; except instead of sesame seeds on the bun there are large chunks of sugar, and instead of meat there is a delicious cream in the center. It is the perfect texture, smooth and sweet, almost like ice cream. Oooo so delicious. I'll take a picture next time we pull it out of the fridge. I think all the hardships of this whole year will be worth it for that taste of the tarte tropizienne.

Following lunch was swimming in the pool (I had to burn some calories somehow) and reading for most of the afternoon. Tonight was supper and now time for bed. School awaits me tomorrow. I think it will be a better day. We'll see. Bonne nuit!

L'ecole et St. Tropez (school and st. tropez)

Yesterday, I did not post after school because all I simply wanted to do was lie down for a long time. Looking back on the day, it does not seem bad, but while I was living it, I'm not going to lie, it was pretty brutal. I know that the first day is probably the hardest. I keep telling myself that things can only go up. The whole day was a blob of overwhelming emotions. First of all, it's hard to comprehend most of what is happening. Also, the whole layout of the school is new. I didn't know where anything was. The people in my class were not overly friendly. When exchange students are in my classes at school I generally make it a point to talk to them, ask them questions about where they're from, see if they're ok. Here, it must be different. I had biology in the morning for two hours. I think that I'll be ok in that class since I've already had biology. After it was English, which will be oh so relaxing to my brain. They do learn British English in my school, but I don't think that will be much of a problem. At the end of English some girls took pity on me and asked if I wanted to sit with them at lunch. Thank goodness. I found Paul in the courtyard before lunch, and he ended up sitting with me too. Not too many of the French girls tried to talk to me at lunch, and the day had already exhausted me so much that I was too tired to try and jump in the conversation. Monday I'll try. Following lunch was two hours of French. I think French will be a bit difficult to understand. I sat next to a girl who let me copy her notes after she took them, and I think she's going to make me a copy of the notes I missed when I couldn't understand. I hope that's what she said! Oooo what an overwhelming day. That's all I can say. It almost seems like ages ago even though it was only yesterday. I think things will progress, though.

The amusement of today overshadows the grief of yesterday. I woke up this morning, and after a bite to eat, descended into the town to watch the little Polynesian parade with some friends. The women shook their grass skirts vigorously with their hips while a band of drummers followed. A canoe race followed. Today was a day for strolling lazily through out the town with friends, grabbing an ice cream or a coca light. Very fun in its simplicity.

This evening my host parents took me to St. Tropez. Such a beautiful city. It reminded me much of Rome. Tiny streets, old buildings brightened with playful shutters, the ocean playing a soft rhythm against the large boulders by the beach. St. Tropez is quite a ritzy place as well. It's a town that reeks of money. Gigantic yachts sat expectantly on the port being washed by their crews clad in matching uniforms. Shoes were left strewn on the earth to not dirty the large sea vessels. Oh I felt like such a tourist as I snapped photo after photo, but I couldn't help myself. We went by the Gendarmerie and finished the trip with window shopping in the never ending store fronts. All can be found in St. Tropez: Dior, Louis Vuitton, Stuart Weitzman, Dolce and Gabbana, and many more names housed in the numerous boutiques. Such a lovely town overtaken by the snooty air of the extremely wealthy. I'm definitely glad I got to spend some time there, and I'd like to go back. However, I'm quite positive that it would not be the place for me to live.

I've picked up a new hobby recently. I've discovered that I quite enjoy finding out which country a car has come from. This is easily done in Europe because the license plates are all marked with the letter, or letters, that represent their country. St. Tropez housed quite a collection of countries. There were many plates from Italy, France (duh), Germany (which has a "D" on the license plate for Deutschland), and even a few from Belgium, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, and Monico. The best is when I find the UK cars. Not only is it a rare thing to find their license plates but also the steering wheel is on the right side instead of the left. Oh and on the drive home I saw the "L" for Luxembourg.

J'attends toujours (I am still waiting)

I thought today was the big day; the start of school. But, no! Tomorrow. I took the bus this morning-it is the town bus, but it goes to the school-and met a girl with whom I waited until I found Cara, the other exchange student. Cara and I, along with our new French friend from my bus, met up with the two Rotarians that were waiting for us at school. Oh the faithful Rotarians, how wonderful it is to have them! So, through the gates we went and up the stairs we climbed, until we arrived at the bulletin boards that had everyone's name and class posted. I was told that I would be in seconde, which is mostly 15 and 16 year olds, but they moved me in to premier (thank goodness). I will say, one of my main concerns was being with students much younger than me.

Happily I moved up to premier. However, those students returned to school yesterday not today. After choosing to be in premier scientifique, I got my schedule which consists of the following: Monday, some class that is a project of some sort (I don't really know what that is), physics, lunch, math, English, and Spanish (haha, more on that in a minute); Tuesday, history/geography, math, lunch, Spanish and some other class (je ne sais pas) that switch between weeks, physics, and biology; Wednesday, French, math, history/geo. and physics which switch between weeks-Wednesdays are half days at school so I only go for three hours; Thursday, math, P.E., lunch, Spanish, math, French, and history/geo.; Friday, biology, English, lunch, and French. Ok. Sorry if that was confusing. The scheduling here is way different from the states. I guess it's more similar to college with so many hours of classes a week, but seeing as I've never been to college I guess I don't really know.

Anyhow, school seems interesting. I'm really not nervous at this point at all. I feel like I should have all the pre-school butterflies, especially since I won't understand the majority of what is said tomorrow, but I'm honestly not that worried. Spanish should be interesting. All the Spanish I possess was learned in third grade or from the few moments I catch of Dora when Lucie is watching Nickelodeon. Learning a language I don't know through a language I don't know. Very humorous, I know. I'll have to let y'all know how that one goes, but it's not until Monday. I think I'm going to like the way the scheduling works out though.

Tomorrow's post will surely be more interesting as I explain all the overwhelming emotions of tomorrow. I've heard the first day is pretty brutal from several of my fellow exchange students, but things can only go up! I feel like I have settled into my home and town, though, so school is coming at a good time.

Today was yet another relaxing day without school. This afternoon my host mom and I went to the grocery. Following, we went and got an ice cream on the port and walked around looking at all the boats and restaurants. After, we took a drive to some tall points of Cavalaire to see the views. I didn't have my camera, but I think we'll return so I can snap a few photos. Ahh, ok so the craziness of school will make for an interesting read demain (tomorrow). Ciao for now.

J'attends (I am waiting)

As my lovely older sister so kindly pointed out to me, all my posts so far are mainly about food. Haha, typical. That is France, though. This will be a short post because my life has been boring since the other night. Not so much boring to me but rather, boring to those of you who bother to read about my life. Yesterday and today I did my typical reading, walking, going to the beach routine. However, this morning I did have a new experience...

I woke up pretty early today, and after some breakfast got ready to walk into town. After wandering the streets for a good 20 minutes, I finally found was I was looking for: the Wednesday market. Every Wednesday there is a market full of all sorts of goodies to buy. I walked down the hot, extremely crowded street seeing bright clothes hanging from tents and laid out on the tables. I smelled Provencal herbs sitting in their little canisters, waiting to accompany some delicate French cuisine. Swimsuits, shoes, touristy items-such as I heart St. Tropez shirts-the works. A fun place to go. I did not buy anything today but went as a bystander to witness the crowded open air Wednesday market. Perhaps next time.

Tomorrow is le rentree for me; the return to school, or in my case the beginning of a completely new school where I won't understand most students who are three years younger than me. I'm really excited though! School will push me to learn the language faster, I do believe. I will definitely post about my first day. For now, that's all.

Le Club de Rotary (The Rotary Club)

Hier soir (last night), I had my first Rotary meeting. At home, our meetings are in the afternoons, but here they are night time gatherings. We went to a restaurant that had the soft sand, bright moon, and calming ocean as its main decoration. The deck where we ate was quickly filled with Rotarians ranging from young to a bit more aged, all rapidly speaking the language I am so eagerly trying to pick up on. I brought my lovely exchange student blazer but only had to wear it when I introduced myself to the club. After receiving my monthly stipend and having an orangina for a cocktail, I was seated at the President's table. I was a bit nervous about that, but it was not bad at all. The club secretary was also at my table; she is a genuinely kind woman who came with us on the ropes course. Paul was also at my table, which was nice. Together our French worked with the Rotarians.

It would be quite an understatement to say that the meal was fabulous. The three course dinner started with salad, cantaloupe, and shrimp and was followed by the main course of shish kabobs (fish for me), baked potato, and vegetables. Finally, for dessert a lovely piece of moist, chocolate cake with a little cup of coffee. The meeting, which basically consisted of eating and talking to one another for three hours, was something I won't mind attending the first Monday of every month.

I was escorted to and from the meeting by a Rotarian and his wife in their tiny European convertible. I felt famous as I was driven down the narrow French streets of this seaside town with the wind whipping my hair in all directions. Ahh the life of an exchange student. I'm sorry my friends have to be in college classes right now while I get to eat and drink with the French. This all seems to good to be true. I guess the trade off is that I have to learn their language; that, however, is one of the main aspects of this whole experience I love the most. As you can tell, my faithful readers, I love what I am doing. I'm so grateful for the love and encouragement everyone has given me, and continually gives me, that has allowed me to step into this surreal life. I am already experiencing wonderful things, and it's only been a week!