Euro Trip Part Deux

So here we go on Euro Trip number two for me!! This one is so different, though. And it's great. Quick summary - I am moving to a town in the south-western region of France (Basque country) called Auch. It's a fairly small-sized town (Grand Haven/Wooster sized for those of you who know each town, respectively....about 30,000 people for those of you who don't) right outside of Toulouse. I am going there with a program called the Teaching Assistant Program in France, which basically is run as a joint program through the French and American embassies and Ministries of Education. I'm going to be assisting primary school teachers in their English classes.

And that's pretty much all I know.

As you might know, I'm not usually very comfortable jumping into big things (like international travel) without many details....so I have to say it is quite an accomplishment for me to be as calm and unconcerned as I am about going into this experience. In a combination with my lifelong fascination with this country, my experiences I've already had here, and a college diploma in hand....I have somehow concocted a really wonderful attitude toward this whole thing. It's like a mix between extreme excitement (to teach adorable small French children, to integrate myself more thoroughly in the culture/language, to actually operate on my own schedule instead of a host family's or a school's or anyone else's, and to have more time to take it all in) and just a comfort in the country that I have yet to have on my arrival or at any point.

Getting here was completely effortless (except for dragging my ridiculously heavy bags through the metro), and when we got out of the metro, it very much felt like I was almost coming home (though not quite...it's still Paris after all). But I recognize the chain store names, the banks, the street signs, I can navigate the map, I can UNDERSTAND people - which is so great. I've even been walking around half expecting to run into someone I might know. It's a wonderful go-with-the-flow attitude that I think will really work out well, and that I'm actually quite proud of myself for feeling and for sticking to it.

And with all of those mental preparations I've made, we FINALLY got to the part of ACTUALLY LEAVING! As I said, the flight and all that was effortless. My good friend from Nantes (where I studied abroad) Hannah Becker and I met up, and our families went out to a lovely brunch in Chicago - complete with a sendoff champagne toast - before getting through O'Hare security in pretty much record time. We knew that one of our other friends from Nantes, who is doing the same program, was flying out of O'Hare at the same-ish time. So we checked the board when we got in, saw that she was boarding, and proceeded to sprint down the terminal to finally catch her as she was waiting in line. It was great to see her (even though we were super sweaty and winded) as I hadn't since we left France two years ago.

 When we got to Paris, we had no trouble getting through customs, getting our long-stay immigration stamp things (so official, aren't we?) and made our way to the train station to meet our other good friend Peter, who I LOVE dearly, and who I also haven't seen in two years! We then had a HOOT getting into the city and then to the apartment we've rented for a few days. The Parisians, known for their generosity and hospitality, did not design their metro to be remotely traveler/foreigner friendly....especially not people who are carrying seven months of their lives on their backs.

I think this picture should go down in infamy.

So we had a time. But thankfully we didn't have any stairs we had to go UP...just lots of stairs going down. So it was ok. We were definitely the dumb Americans, though. When we got out, we then had to walk uphill, through a busy street marche, where my suitcase wheel broke and I almost trampled an old French woman. But there were no complete casualties, and we got to our apartment just fine. We were met by the owner/landlord (?) who showed us around and helped us get situated (and who apparently though our American French accents were adorable).

This is the living room, with two couches along the walls.

The bedroom is right on the other side of the living room.

Let me tell you. This bathroom is ridiculous. The ENTIRE thing is covered in orange shag carpet. INCLUDING all the walls, the TRASH CAN, the back of the door. Also, when you turn the light off, there's a spotlight on that little buddah statue. It's a little unnerving.

Then we cleaned ourselves, got set up and went to get lunch from a patisserie and ate it in a beautiful park. It was so quintessential French, and I loved it! Paris is definitely redeeming itself for sure! I'll put up pictures and things later....and I will update you all on the really exciting things when I actually get to where I'm going!

Lunch spot!