Hey everybody!
Right now I am on Spring break for two weeks. We are completely filled up! It is amazing and relaxing and wonderful. I figure I HAVE TO write a blog entry before all of the intricate details of this two-week-period of awesome leaves my memory.
Well, first of all, last weekend, I went to Paris with Claude and Pia and Manon. We went around shopping and visited Montmartres, which has a gorgeous church called the Sacre-Coeur. The acoustics in that cathedral are so amazing I don't even know what I would do if I had the chance to just sit in there and play music and sing. Also, I got the chance to see Jess, a fellow AFSer who was here for the fall semester program! It was so great, we walked around the neighborhood in Paris that is home to the Galeries Lafayette and The Opera House. We went up to the top of the Galeries Lafayette and talked and took some pictures. I am so glad I got to see her, because she lives in Pennsylvania... not exactly too close to Cali.
Anyhow, Monday was my only "rest day." I packed for our trip to the west coast (of France), and I also got to see a Californian who works at our school. She actually just finished her contract as an assistant to the English classes. Good stuff. =) She's super nice, and we had plenty of things to say because the last time we got together was in December, I believe...
Tuesday we were off to Noirmoutier to spend time with the cousins, and along the way we stopped at the Chateaux de la Loire. Pretty much, there are about 15 castles that are near the river Loire. We visited a couple the first day (Tuesday)- Chambord, the largest of tthe Chateaux de le Loire, and Cheverny, where Hergé (Who writes Tintin) got his inspiration, then we slept at a super cute town called Blois. At Blois, I ate till I was going to burst at a adorable little restaurant called "Au Coin d'Table." A hamburger, of all things, and a moelleux au chocolat (drool). I didn't take an apetizer, but had a bite of Pia's, a goat cheese toast-thing. So delicious... and I don't even like goat cheese that much. If you ever find yourself in France in a town called Blois, you won't regret eating there. Then Wednesday we went to a town that I forget the name of to see the house where Leonardo Da Vinci died in, and it was super fascinating. Still Wednesday, we went to see a castle called Chenenceau, which was built across the river a bit. The lighting was awesome in that castle. Pia bought bubbles from the gift store to our disdain ( :) ), but I have ended up using almost all of them because bubbles are just really fricking awesome (!!). Finally we ended up in a town called Chinon to sleep, and we saw the castle from afar, but didn't get up the courage to go take a look at it cause our castle intake for the past couple days had been enough for a long time... So we went shopping instead. I bought some presents for people and a shirt for myself. And that night, I had a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I ate in a good Tex-Mex restaurant in France. :O You don't know how long I waited. But we found one in this little town called Chinon... Ok, well, in reality it was only good, but I have not had Mexican food for such a long time. :) It was worth it.
Thursday we drove to Noirmoutier, and now we are here, relaxing and sleeping and some more shopping... :| Although I am mostly buying presents. Although I did buy myself the most amazing backpack ever. =) I look like an explorer. Ok, anyhow. I am going to stop buying things, now, cause next week the AFSer I roomed with who is living in the South of France is coming to stay with us and I am taking her up to Paris for four days. Luckily we won't be paying for a hostel at least- my host grandma lives close to the Metro, and she has offered to take us in! I will have to eat cheap and abstain from buying anything other than metro tickets and passes into museums. ;)
So yeah, through all of this I have no idea how I am going to find a way to do my homework etc., but you know what, homework comes second to me. Second after life experiences. And that is how I think it should always be.
Have a wonderful week everybody! I shall try to update my blog next week while we are in Paris. :D
À bientôt
Friday, April 22, 2011
Monday, April 11, 2011
Yay for irregular blog posts!!
So I know this is another example of my oddly spaced blog posts, but I have some good news!
My average for this trimester:
13.93!!!!!!
This is really good for me :)
The class average is 11.55.
So yes, I feel accomplished.
My best clss was English, at 19.65/20, and my worst class came in at 9.60/20, history. :P
The grade I am the most proud of is in Sciences Physiques, though, cause I love that class and work hard in it! I got a 15.60/20. Hooray!
Yay for grades!
Yay for working hard!
Hip hip hoorayyyyyy.
See you in three months ;)
-Carly
My average for this trimester:
13.93!!!!!!
This is really good for me :)
The class average is 11.55.
So yes, I feel accomplished.
My best clss was English, at 19.65/20, and my worst class came in at 9.60/20, history. :P
The grade I am the most proud of is in Sciences Physiques, though, cause I love that class and work hard in it! I got a 15.60/20. Hooray!
Yay for grades!
Yay for working hard!
Hip hip hoorayyyyyy.
See you in three months ;)
-Carly
Sunday, April 10, 2011
91
Do you know what the title of this blog post represents? Well, if you don't, let me elucidate you...
I have lived in France for SEVEN whole months already. I have made plenty of friends, expanded my view of the world, and tasted another way of life for over two hundred days, already. But now things are coming to an end. I have exactly three months left in this place, so I have to live it up. 91 days, to be exact.
I feel as though I have really grown a lot during my stay here. I have come to understand a lot more about myself and others, and feel much more independent.
But something else I have noticed is that I feel almost as if this has been a rite of passage for me into a new section of my life. I have realized that everything moves on, and I have to accept change and differences. I have also learned about the ephemeral aspect of real life.
Each second only lasts a second, and we can't ever get that second back.
From now on, I have a pact with myself to live more in the now than ever before, and try my hardest at everything I do. I hope it will make a difference in the long run to know that I didn't waste my time here.
On another subject, life has been so magnificently normal lately. Last weekend I got to hang out with a ton of AFSers in Paris for a birthday party. This week I saw my host grandma on Wednesday as usual, and she brought the triple chocolate cake... :) And this weekend was wonderfully relaxing- I stayed at home Saturday, but went outside and hung out with my host family in the wonderful weather, and this morning I went downtown for a bit with my host mom and then did some homework, took a little bike ride in the amazingly beautiful area that I am in surrounded by fields and little hills (something I want to do more than once a week now that it is warm out!! Spring weather has come so fast!), and then my host cousins/aunts came to have a little appetizer with us. Now I am finishing up my homework and eventually will eat dinner. :)
And tomorrow is a new day. :D
-Carly
I have lived in France for SEVEN whole months already. I have made plenty of friends, expanded my view of the world, and tasted another way of life for over two hundred days, already. But now things are coming to an end. I have exactly three months left in this place, so I have to live it up. 91 days, to be exact.
I feel as though I have really grown a lot during my stay here. I have come to understand a lot more about myself and others, and feel much more independent.
But something else I have noticed is that I feel almost as if this has been a rite of passage for me into a new section of my life. I have realized that everything moves on, and I have to accept change and differences. I have also learned about the ephemeral aspect of real life.
Each second only lasts a second, and we can't ever get that second back.
From now on, I have a pact with myself to live more in the now than ever before, and try my hardest at everything I do. I hope it will make a difference in the long run to know that I didn't waste my time here.
On another subject, life has been so magnificently normal lately. Last weekend I got to hang out with a ton of AFSers in Paris for a birthday party. This week I saw my host grandma on Wednesday as usual, and she brought the triple chocolate cake... :) And this weekend was wonderfully relaxing- I stayed at home Saturday, but went outside and hung out with my host family in the wonderful weather, and this morning I went downtown for a bit with my host mom and then did some homework, took a little bike ride in the amazingly beautiful area that I am in surrounded by fields and little hills (something I want to do more than once a week now that it is warm out!! Spring weather has come so fast!), and then my host cousins/aunts came to have a little appetizer with us. Now I am finishing up my homework and eventually will eat dinner. :)
And tomorrow is a new day. :D
-Carly
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Shortest Time Span in Between Two Blog Posts I Have Ever Made
So hey! This isn't really a blog post... This post pertains to one thing in particular. French food. Not just any French food, although it is alllllll so amazing, but particularly French bakery items. Not just any bakery items, but one amazing, delectable, beautiful, and delicious cake in every single way. What I'm talking about is:
Three Chocolates.
To get this out there to start with, the only real part of this tasty treat that is cake is a centimeter thick layer of it at the bottom. The rest is dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate mousse one on top of the other with a very thin layer of plain old chocolate on the top. After eating one serving, I feel like my arteries are going to explode in the best way possible. Well, no actually. The thing itself is insanely light... I would chalk that up to the mousse. I am not saying that it isn't amazingly unhealthy for you, but for being so darn sugary, you'd think it would be pretty heavy.
What else is great about this cake? The versatility. Three different ways to eat it... :) You can, obviously, take a spoonful with a little bit of everything, and the taste is quite marvelous. But you also have the choice of starting at the top or bottom, which leaves you with a white chocolate taste or a dark chocolate taste. Any way you eat it though, if you are a lover of sugar-filled/chocolately-abundant things, this is your choice. :)
But I guess now that I have mentioned the words "French food," I can't leave it hanging out in the open. So here is a list of some of the food ventures I have had this year and my thoughts about them:
-Duck Confit- OMG. AMAZINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
-Foie Gras- Nomnomnom
-Rabbit- ...meh...
-Plain old duck- :D:D
-Steak Tartare- Surprisingly delicious!
-A plethora of cheeses:
-Runny ones- Blech... my mouth tastes like poop afterwards...
-Firm cheeses-quite yummy!
-Escargot- Doesn't taste like what you think a snail would taste like. Pretty good, actually!
-Thon St.Moret- This is pretty much like a little dip made out of the equivalent of cream cheese in France and tuna. I love tuna to start with, so it's great!
-So many yogurts I don't think I could name them all- They are all amazing in their own ways. Except danonette. I actually don't care for this one, even though it is etremely popular. And Mamie Nova is bizarre.
-Ratatouille-'Tis ok, but... I dunno... I am not a huge fan.
-Steak Haché- Miam! (Yum in French)
-Macarons- Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. So unbelievably delicious. DELICIOUSSSSS. And beautiful!
-Raclette- Good if you are in a cheesy mood...
-Tartiflette- Another mountain dish. Potatoes+cheese+onions+lardons=obviously amazing!
-Crepes!-So good! Especially if you make the batter yourself.
-Galettes-(Savory crepes) We don't make the batter, but it is great no matter what you put in!
-Quiche- So many different types... but they are all very good and easy to make to boot!
-Pâté- it depends, but normally, it is pretty good!
-Tartes-Sucré or salé, they are great :)
I guess that is all I can think of for now... so I'll be bidding you farwell!
Bisoux!
-Carly
Three Chocolates.
To get this out there to start with, the only real part of this tasty treat that is cake is a centimeter thick layer of it at the bottom. The rest is dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate mousse one on top of the other with a very thin layer of plain old chocolate on the top. After eating one serving, I feel like my arteries are going to explode in the best way possible. Well, no actually. The thing itself is insanely light... I would chalk that up to the mousse. I am not saying that it isn't amazingly unhealthy for you, but for being so darn sugary, you'd think it would be pretty heavy.
What else is great about this cake? The versatility. Three different ways to eat it... :) You can, obviously, take a spoonful with a little bit of everything, and the taste is quite marvelous. But you also have the choice of starting at the top or bottom, which leaves you with a white chocolate taste or a dark chocolate taste. Any way you eat it though, if you are a lover of sugar-filled/chocolately-abundant things, this is your choice. :)
But I guess now that I have mentioned the words "French food," I can't leave it hanging out in the open. So here is a list of some of the food ventures I have had this year and my thoughts about them:
-Duck Confit- OMG. AMAZINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
-Foie Gras- Nomnomnom
-Rabbit- ...meh...
-Plain old duck- :D:D
-Steak Tartare- Surprisingly delicious!
-A plethora of cheeses:
-Runny ones- Blech... my mouth tastes like poop afterwards...
-Firm cheeses-quite yummy!
-Escargot- Doesn't taste like what you think a snail would taste like. Pretty good, actually!
-Thon St.Moret- This is pretty much like a little dip made out of the equivalent of cream cheese in France and tuna. I love tuna to start with, so it's great!
-So many yogurts I don't think I could name them all- They are all amazing in their own ways. Except danonette. I actually don't care for this one, even though it is etremely popular. And Mamie Nova is bizarre.
-Ratatouille-'Tis ok, but... I dunno... I am not a huge fan.
-Steak Haché- Miam! (Yum in French)
-Macarons- Wowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. So unbelievably delicious. DELICIOUSSSSS. And beautiful!
-Raclette- Good if you are in a cheesy mood...
-Tartiflette- Another mountain dish. Potatoes+cheese+onions+lardons=obviously amazing!
-Crepes!-So good! Especially if you make the batter yourself.
-Galettes-(Savory crepes) We don't make the batter, but it is great no matter what you put in!
-Quiche- So many different types... but they are all very good and easy to make to boot!
-Pâté- it depends, but normally, it is pretty good!
-Tartes-Sucré or salé, they are great :)
I guess that is all I can think of for now... so I'll be bidding you farwell!
Bisoux!
-Carly
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Oh hai there!
Hey everybody~~
Not much has been up lately... well, except for one thing. One big, marvelous thing... SPRING! It is now officially the season of bonheur and flowers. I am so so so happy that it is finally here. I seriously thought that winter would never end. But looky now! It is 17 degrees outside and everything is blooming. I can't believe my eyes. The transformation from completely desolate to blossoming and leafy is happening so fast. And with it is my attitude. I am feeling quite positive lately. No matter what, I can't keep myself from having a smile in the back of my mind.
I have also been struck by a recent wave of nostalgia. Every day there is at least one thing that reminds me of the US or earlier in the year or anything, really. It is so weird... but wonderful at the same time.
The French is going well. I am more and more confident with it every day. My vocabulary grows with every week, and my grammar perfects itself with every month.
Speaking of months... :O Guess how many I have been here for? 6?! 6! SIX MONTHS?! Wow. Actually. This is kind of old news. I will have my seven months in France mark in 10 days. Holy crap. Time flies.
If only everybody I know and love could be here with me. There are so many things to say, yet I can't figure out a means to get all of my fleeting thoughts into writing. And some of the things I am going through are only understandable through the experience itself. Other things I can't even start to explain. And occasionally I forget what I wanted to mention that was of such importance! Everybody should just come to France. 'Twould be nice.
Salut,
Carly
Not much has been up lately... well, except for one thing. One big, marvelous thing... SPRING! It is now officially the season of bonheur and flowers. I am so so so happy that it is finally here. I seriously thought that winter would never end. But looky now! It is 17 degrees outside and everything is blooming. I can't believe my eyes. The transformation from completely desolate to blossoming and leafy is happening so fast. And with it is my attitude. I am feeling quite positive lately. No matter what, I can't keep myself from having a smile in the back of my mind.
I have also been struck by a recent wave of nostalgia. Every day there is at least one thing that reminds me of the US or earlier in the year or anything, really. It is so weird... but wonderful at the same time.
The French is going well. I am more and more confident with it every day. My vocabulary grows with every week, and my grammar perfects itself with every month.
Speaking of months... :O Guess how many I have been here for? 6?! 6! SIX MONTHS?! Wow. Actually. This is kind of old news. I will have my seven months in France mark in 10 days. Holy crap. Time flies.
If only everybody I know and love could be here with me. There are so many things to say, yet I can't figure out a means to get all of my fleeting thoughts into writing. And some of the things I am going through are only understandable through the experience itself. Other things I can't even start to explain. And occasionally I forget what I wanted to mention that was of such importance! Everybody should just come to France. 'Twould be nice.
Salut,
Carly
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