ONE Month

Bonjour everyone! So, today marks one month that I've spent here in France.  I can't believe it has been a month, but I feel like I have been here much longer.  Christmas and New Years feel like they were years ago.  This week was good! We finished the intensive stage and had a show to celebrate everyone's countries and cultures.  It was a lot of fun.  I don't want to start real school, bleh.

This week, my friends Anna, Hansen and myself purchased tickets to go to Rome this weekend, but after much debate, we changed the flights to the second weekend in March.  We weren't aware that we have orientation starting Monday and it would have truly been a mess.  Yesterday, Anna, Zuzana, and I went shopping and walking around in Compiègne. It was nice to walk around and not really have an agenda.  After that we decided to go back to Anna's (upstairs from me) and cook a late lunch.  On the way back, we ran into some other exchange students that are from Spain and Mexico.  A few of them live in my building, so we all walked to the supermarket and then to our apartments.  Zuzana bought a 24 pack of Stella which was hysterical, so we had one of the Mexican guys escort us to my apartment with the Stella in hand.  Want to talk about horrible timing? As soon as we walk into my apartment and put the beer down, I hear a key turning in the door.  One of my roommates was arriving to move things in. Upon first sight and first meeting each other, poor Lydie (that's her name) witnessed a Mexican, a tall goth Slovakian girl, and the short American handling a case of Stella.  Good first impression I'd say.

Lydie and her friend moved in all of her things.  I feel like she is here to stay.  I thought I was bad with moving back and forth to URI; scratch that.  She filled the kitchen with her own pots, pans, spices, huge refrigerator, you name it.  She is extremely nice.  We talked in French and I had no problem understanding her, so hopefully I'll learn a lot from her and Clemence, my other roommate.  Lydie told me that they know each other, so I think it will be a good experience.  Lydie left this morning and will return on Wednesday.  I've unexpectedly become a little territorial over the apartment; I've definitely gotten used to being here on my own, so with everyone and their belongings arriving, I have had to adjust.  Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about my first month here and have decided to create a list of things that I've learned...

What I have learned after a month in France:

1) They really eat baguettes, constantly.
2) Showering without a shower curtain or suspended shower head is difficult.
3) Postal workers ride bicycles.
4) Be careful that no one steals your bike seat.
5) DO NOT fill a diesel tank with gasoline.
6) Everybody loves New York.
7) There is no iced coffee here.
8) There is nothing cuter than a child speaking French. Seriously.
9) Stamps are not in sticker form, you have to lick them. What?
10) It's necessary to appreciate the differences.

Hope everyone has/had a great weekend! Talk soon!
Bisous,
Amanda