Monday, August 22, 2011

Brest.


I arrived in Brest late Thursday night, exhausted after 12 hours of travel. My friend from my first stay in France, Jules, met me at the train station and took me back to his home where I stayed for the weekend. On Friday we woke up early and relaxed around the house for a few hours. After having lunch with Jules and his parents, we went to a beach near Brest (Plage de Moulin Blanc). Afterwards we met Jules’ friend Guillaume and visited the American monument in Brest, and the old castle. Who knew there was an American monument in Brest? Not I! It is in memory of the World Wars, and the alliance between France and the United States I believe. The castle is also a maritime museum now, it was rather interesting.



Saturday we spent at a different, much prettier, beach about 30 minutes from Brest. The weather was perfect for the beach, I was lucky in that aspect, because Bretagne is notorious for clouds and Jules’ said it wasn’t good weather before my arrival and wouldn’t be after my departure. The water of the Atlantic was a bit to cold for my taste so I just dipped my feet. We returned to Jules’ house after a long day at the beach for dinner with his parents. After dinner we went to see Melancholia, a movie that appeared at the Cannes Film Festival. It was a bizarre film about the end of the world. I cannot say I liked it or disliked it; it was just interesting.



Sunday we visited Oceanapolis, the aquarium. It was great, I absolutely love watching seals, they are so playful! Overall, it was a relaxing and nice weekend in Brest.


Sunday, August 21, 2011

Germany.


Well I spent 9 days in Germany and it just flew right by so quickly I didn't even write about it! I arrived Tuesday afternoon, exhausted from only 3 hours of sleep the night before and 6 hours of travel starting at 6 am. So when I arrived at Lena’s house, I had a little snack, and took a much needed nap. I was served a traditional German dinner of meatballs, potatoes, and cauliflower before heading to one of Lena’s friends houses. We hung out and got to know each other a bit and then we returned home.

The next days flew by before I knew it. We visited the city where Jules (Lena’s boyfriend) will study, the huge mall nearby, the Ikea in the Netherlands to shop for everyone’s new apartments. We also went out to Germanys largest Nightclub on Friday for a night of dancing. Saturday we celebrated Philips birthday at his house with a barbeque get together. Monday we went to Amsterdam, and gawked at the prostitutes in the red light district, and laughed at the souvenir shops selling marijuana paraphernalia. Tuesday, Lena and I visited her new apartment to take measurements for wallpaper. Wednesday, my last full day, I visited a nearby castle with the family and for dinner we went with all of Lena’s friends for an all-you-can-eat spare ribs buffet.

Dinner at the Portugese restaurant.
 Lena and her dad in front of the school.
 Index, the gigantic night club.
 One of Amsterdam's beautiful canals
 The castle near Nordhorn.

I had a fantastic time. The best part was that for the first time in forever I didn’t feel like a tourist or a guest, I felt at home. I have Lena and her parents to thank for that. I guess she’s returning the favor for her time spent with us.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Paris

day 1:
We arrived in Paris Saturday evening settled into our apartment and then went out to a nice dinner near by. We are in the 1st district, so we are right by the Louvre and right in the heart of Paris! We had an expensive, but delicious, dinner. I figured I've got to splurge one night in Paris. We had Duck breast in raspberry sauce with potatoes, DELICIOUS! Then Chris, Brad and I shared 2 desserts: chocolate cake with a hot fudge center and vanilla ice cream on top, then a slice of amazing cheesecake with a bit of a cinnamony crust and a scoop of salted caramel ice cream on top, and a drizzle of amazing raspberry sauce. So worth the 22 euro we spent! Then we went back to the apartment to wait for May, who arrive at around 11pm, we then all played French Scrabble for a few hours until bed.





day 2:
We woke up at 9 got ourselves ready and finally out the door by 10:30, then we went to search for a market to buy food. We found some places open on Sunday thankfully. I bought some chicken veggies and potatoes to make dinner (for a much more modest price) and I also bought some croissants, bread, and yogurt for breakfast. We dropped the food at home, quickly ate breakfast, then headed out to get into the Louvre for free on the first Sunday of the month? NOT, the 3 hour line wrapped entirely around the building, which is HUGE. So we took a bunch of pictures of the outside and the garden. Then set out walking towards the Arc de Triomphe. We got sidetracked and looked at a few more beautiful buildings, and eventually made it over to the Eiffel Tower instead. Then we had a delicious Chinese lunch before heading to the Arc de Triomphe finally. We stupidly did not realize there was an underground path leading to the Arc from the other side of the street, since it is in the middle of an enormous round-about, so instead we played a little game of Frogger and ran as fast as we could when we saw a break in traffic. After the Arc we took a little stroll down the Champs-Elysses, looking at stores much too expensive for us, but sadly many were closed because it was Sunday. We strolled a little more and finally decided to head back home to relieve our exhausted feet and make dinner. We spent the night, once again, playing French scrabble.







day 3:
We slept in a little out of necessity today. We finally go out of the apartment around 11:30 and headed to Notre Dame. We waited in the line for not too long and went in an then back out. We had lunch indoors at a restarant because it was starting to rain. We waited out the rain and I had my first ever Croque Monsieur (slice of thick bread, ham, and cheese toasted). Afterwards we walked over to the Centre Pompidou which is a museum of modern art that is seriously the most disgusting piece of architecture on the earth. We had ice cream for dessert: caramel pecan-toooo delicious! Then we did a little bit of window shopping. We were exhausted, and Brad wasn't feeling well, so we made it an early day and headed back to the apartment to rest  at 5pm.






Overall it has been a satisfying Paris experience. Being my second visit, I am not as anxious to see everything there is to see, but rather just relax and enjoy the beauty of Paris and the fact that I am on vacation! Tomorrow early morning I leave for Germany, 6 am, so I will have to the leave the apartment at 5 am to be safe. I am very excited to see Lena and see a new place with new people.

Friday, August 5, 2011

c'est fini.

Well, my final paper is turned in, my stuff is nearly all packed, my final dinner in Grenoble is being digested. The trip of a lifetime is coming to a close...NOT! Now the fun starts. Not that Grenoble wasn't fun, we had our great moments together, and the weekend getaways were fantastic, but now off to new things. The best part? No reading, no homework! If you were wondering why I've been so absent on the blog lately, its all the dang school work! I guess that's why its called study abroad.

But now I'll have wonderful time to read Quatre Filles et un Jean (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants in French) on the train to Paris, and time to throroughly soak up my last few weeks here in Europe.

So here is the agenda:
Tomorrow I leave Grenoble for good at 12:05pm on a train to Paris. I'll arrive just after 3pm, and wait for one of the friends I'm staying with until his train arrives an hour later (more precious reading time!) We will then set off for the apartment we'll be staying in. My three friends have rented it for the week, and are graciously letting me stay for just 3 days to get my taste of Paris for a very good price. We'll spend Saturday evening exploring The City of Light at night, which is a side of Paris I've had yet to see. Sunday we hope to go to the Lourve because it is free the first Sunday of each month, and other than that, our plans are in Chris' hands. I am up for anything, as I've already been to the city once, so I'm not immensely concerned about missing anything iconic.

Tuesday morning I'll leave Paris for Germany! I'll arrive in the Munster train station where one or more of the wonderful Ostendorps will pick me up and bring me to their home in Nordhorn. I left the plans in Lena's hands, so we will see what she has in store for me. I believe an Amsterdam trip was in the plans though.

On Thursday the 18th I'll leave Germany for Brest where I will visit Jules (a friend from my first stay in France). He has graciously offered to entertain me for 4 days, once again my laziness in planning is apparent, as I am leaving that up to him. Then finally Monday the 22nd I will return to Paris for one last night. I think I may decide to stay closer to the airport for easier morning commute and a cheaper room. finally my flight will leave Paris around 11 or so Tuesday morning and I will finally be on my way home. It will be bittersweet, but I will definitely be ready. I'm missing my wonderful family, friends, and kitties so very much!

Hopefully I will have time to share my wonderful experiences as they happen. Until then it's Goodbye Grenoble, Hello Vacation! :)

A photo of the old church and the farm market from one of my last days here.