First impressions

I'm in America. WEIRD. Since I've spent most of my first day here asleep, I've only noticed a couple of things.

1. It's COLD. As a matter of fact, when I got here it was about 50 degrees colder than it was in Saint Etienne when I left.

2. I'm literally afraid to drive. It doesn't help that there's so much snow on the ground that I can't imagine there's really earth underneath. It also doesn't help that it snowed all morning and there was a 10 car pileup on the highway. Without all of those things, call me crazy, but I think I'd still be scared to drive.

3. I'm going to miss French and French people. I like the language. I like the nuances of it. I like the people and their silly ways, even if they drive me crazy most of the time. I'm pretty sure people in general drive me crazy most of the time. After 30 minutes in the airport in Detroit I was already sick of Midwesterners and pulled out Le Monde.

4. My family is ridiculous. When we were in the car on the way back from the airport I had a moment where I felt like we were in some crazy movie like Home for the Holidays or A Christmas Story. Just your average ridiculous Midwest family, all packed into a car like sardines, all yelling at the dad.

5. I prefer my bed in Saint Etienne.

6. I love pickles.

7. I did a great job cleaning my room over the summer before I left for France, and I appreciate all that hard work now.

That's all for now. More observations to come.

Saint Etienne sous la neige

I didn't believe the Stephanois when they told me they got snow here. I shrugged it off and said "In Milwaukee, last winter, we had 3 meters of snow!" And then it started. And it didn't stop for almost two days. Even though it all melted in a matter of days, I believe them now.

Happy Christmas!

Just one of the many strange English phrases I plan to bring to America with me....TOMORROW! What can I say, it's a gift for the masses. Santa Claus is very generous this year. You've been forewarned, my English is a tad ridiculous. It's a mixture of the English the French (attempt to) speak, British English words, and a screwed up Midwest accent that I'd like to think changes a little bit everyday.


I'm not sure how to feel about the upcoming 2 weeks. I know that I'm excited to see everybody, and I know I'll be happy to come back to France in January. But, I wonder what will seem different, if anything. I wonder what I'll miss about France. I know it's going to be a whirlwind couple of weeks, and I really can't wait!


I'm hoping that everything will go alright with my flights. I know it's been snowing pretty much nonstop in the US for a few days now, and that has me terrified. Tomorrow will be a long enough day as it is, without the extra hassle of delays. I have to leave my apartment around 6:00 tomorrow morning to take the tram to the train station. I then take a train to Lyon. Then I take a train from Lyon to Paris (FIRST class!). Then, once in Paris, I get to brave both the metro and the RER before I finally arrive at Charles de Gaulle. Then I fly to Detroit where I'll hop on the plane to Green Bay. Complicated, I know. And probably more than you cared to hear, but now you can feel my pain.


I know I'm only leaving for 2 weeks, but still it feels strange that the people I see and talk to everyday these days will be 4000 miles away. I know I'll have my other people back in my life, for awhile, but this is why traveling is hard. I always miss someone.

Finally!

Boule à Neige, Boule à Neige, Boule à Neige d'Hiver!

The Christmas season is finally upon us, and Lord knows I'm one to be in a festive mood. Problem is, in Saint Etienne there's no snow. To me, it still feel like I'm months away from Christmas when in reality, I've only weeks to go!

Though there is no snow in Saint Etienne, that doesn't mean the Stephanois aren't in the Christmas spirit. We have a Marche de Noel complete with vin chaud, colorful chalets selling everything from dried meats to jewelry, and its very own ferris wheel! I counted down the days before the grand opening, and when the day finally came, I couldn't have possibly been more excited. So far I've gone no less than four times, which means I've consumed no less than four glasses of delicious vin chaud. More to come in the weeks ahead. Truth be told, I'm fairly certain the vin chaud lady (my new best friend) already recognizes us. I guess I can't really blame her for taking notice of the goofy Americans who are giddy at the sight of her delicious product. Just know that if it is between the hours of 10 and 7 France time, chances are I'm either at the Marche de Noel or am thinking about going to the Marche de Noel. It's pretty much the happiest place on earth!

In addition to the marvel that is the Marche de Noel, this region of France has some other special traditions for the month of December. One of which is the Fete des Lumieres in Lyon. This consists of millions of people crammed together in the center of Lyon looking at lights projected onto beautiful old buildings. I went yesterday for a few hours, and I'm glad I saw it, but I can't say it was the happiest place on earth.

Another, dare I say BETTER, tradition takes place today le 8 decembre in the region. This particular date commemorates the day the Virgin Mary came to heal the Lyonnais of the Plague. As the story goes, the people who were suffering from this disease placed candles outside, on their windowsills to notify the Virgin Mary that they needed healing. Now, every December 8th, the people of the region put candles on their windowsills and say a prayer. I, of course, being the good Stephanoise that I am, followed suit. Mathilde, Jean, and I each lit a candle, put them on our balcony, and said a little prayer.

Just like in the US, Christmas trees are all the rage here. Apparently, in our apartment, Charlie Brown Christmas trees are all the rage. Mathilde brought us back this tree after a weekend in the country with her family. We couldn't be more proud of our pathetic little sapin de noel!

To Go Cups

Though I really should be writing a blog about the Marché de Noel, I can't resist the temptation to recount a couple of particularily strange things that happened last night.

1: I needed to get money from an ATM, which, in France means you have the choice of using the outdoor ATM (like normal people) or going inside the lobby of the bank at any hour of the day to use the ATM without the threat of the elements one would face outdoors. Now I know that it is never worth the risk to use the special indoor ATM. Because the handle on the inside of the door was broken clean off, and the door needed to be pulled open, Morgan and I were truly stuck in the bank. We tried everything to get out, to no avail, and then resorted to pounding on the windows until a kind passerby opened the door from the outside, no problem whatsoever. The kind stranger looked at us like we were absolutely insane, but we were just happy to have escaped the hot little bank lobby.

2: I have seen this happen in Milwaukee once or twice too, but last night there was a dog at the Dirty Old Man Bar. I love dogs, sure, but a large dog in a crowded bar just seems a little weird.

3: As bartime was nearing, the power went out at the Dirty Old Man Bar. At first I thought it was a joke, or someone's birthday. But when it seemed that nobody was planning on turning any lights any time soon, I finally understood that there really was a power outage. So people lit candles and used cellphones to navigate the pitch black room. Strange to say the least.

4: Because there was no power in the bar, they told us we needed to finish our beers and go. Or, if we preferred, they had to go cups. This was not a joke. They truly gave us plastic cups to pour our beer into and finish on our way to La Mine. A couple of cops passed us on the way, nobody seemed to care in the least.

France is weird. And pretty cool.