Les vacanes!!! (Part 1)

So, I haven't posted for a while because I've been busy and we had vacation (during which I worked as well as had some fun). The weather has been incredible here. It is like we came out of this winter fog and it has been sunny and in the 40s or 50s almost every day. It's crazy!!! Before vacation I was busy recovering from my trip to England, working, teaching some new English classes and I've started writing my French short thesis type thing. (It's really hard!) Now that's officially the second semester of school here it is really hitting me that I'm leaving in less than 6 months!! It's crazy to think about how much I've done (and not done) in 6 months!!

Anyways, enough reflections. Since I last posted I worked a lot and continued running and stuff. Then last weekend vacation started!!! On Saturday, I "helped" a friend move. In fact, I did nothing except eat and watch confusedly as other people helped. He has a permanent position as a lecturer here now so he has become a real person and purchased a really nice apartment. I got really lost going to his house even though it is about a 5 minute walk from my house and then didn't understand directions on the phone, it was one of those depressing situations where I realize that I am still not even close to being fluent in French.

I went into the field with a doctoral student, Aurelie, on Sunday. She was so helpful and it was really fun to be in the field with her. It was so beautiful outside and with my magical pump it was just like spending a beautiful day outside with a friend!!!

The next day, I left for Anjou to collect fossils with my friends Corinne and Thomas. I thought we were going to collect samples from the actual field but it turns out we were really moving a doctor's incredible collection of fossils that was given to the University. It was still really fun, despite waking up at 4 am for the 2nd day in a row. It also turns out that I had been pretty close to Anjou (in the Loire Valley) before with Stephanie and Grady. So that was nice. So we collected fossils and then were tourists for another day. We stayed at the houses of Corinne's brothers. The first was not actually there but he lives in a very traditional regional house and it was so cute!!!! Then we stayed with her other brother and his family, and we saw her 1 month old niece. She was so cute and it made me so excited to see little phoebe.

We returned from Anjou on Wednesday evening with all of our fossils in our 2 vans (with no radio) and unloaded all of the fossils and then prepared to work for the next 2 days. For me, I'm filtering samples and it is never fun. I have less time to filter all of my samples now but it was worth it for the trip to Anjou. I spoke mostly French for 4 days straight, I spent time with people I really like and I got to see another part of France (again!!!)

Ok....must go work.

Ciao for now!!

Les vacances!! (Part 2)

Hi again,

So after returning from Anjou and having some filtering issues for 2 days. I hate filtering!!! I went to the Jura (the region just east of Burgundy) for a weekend of fun in the snow with 7 other people from the University. It was so beautiful and so fun!!! We went cross-country skiing, which I haven't done since I was little and it was really funny. I don't think I ever actually learned skill and whenever Betsey told Maresa and I what to do we rebelled so consequently, I have no technique. Making it even more fun. Our friend Thomas was the teacher and he told me to do what I do when I run so I did that on the uphill parts but it was quite tiring.

After, skiing on Saturday we drove to a down-hill ski village called Lelex and hiked up to a refuge. Some snowshoed and others were on back country skis and the journey took us a little longer then expected. We arrived at the refuge, which was warm and had good food, after dark and were so happy to here that there were beds open for us. The next day we hiked to the summit of the Jura and you could see all the Alps, Mont Blanc and Lake Geneva! We were actually in Switzerland for about 20 minutes. For me, this is very cool. I didn't even need to show anyone my passport as there was just a barbed wire fence that magically appeared!!! It was so cool.It was another beautiful, tiring and completely fulfilling day. I love snowshoeing, despite the fact that I only had my Merrel hiking shoes and they were completely soaked by the end of the day. (I'm lucky it was nice out!)

The weekend was really awesome. It was so nice to spend time with friends (it is so nice to have friends who invite me on ski weekends) and to just hang out with people.

It was a pretty great vacation. Exhausting, but good. I got back and slept really well on Sunday night and then proceeded to finish my filtering.....finally!!! It was an extra slow process this time and I really wanted to kill the pump. Luckily, I persevered and nothing was harmed.


Ok. Well, I'm going to take a break to practice more of my French language skills!!! (I'm getting better, which is also gratifying and I can actually spend multiple days speaking French without my brain freezing up. However, it is still a grand work in progress.)

Until next time....

Paris and London!!!

I've had a big week! I saw my Fulbright friends, including Sasha as well as my sister, Maresa!!!! It was so awesome.

Paris was great because it was fun seeing all of the Fulbrighters again. Sasha and I shared a great hotel on Boulevard St. Michel. By pure chance, the hotel was just 5 minutes from the Sorbonne , where our meetings were held and was next to the restaurant the commission to took us to eat one night. The meeting was pretty good and I believe that my and Sasha's presentations on the regions inspired others to come visit us. (We both agree that in many ways we are lucky to not be living in Paris.) There were also some pretty interesting discussions on diplomacy, women's rights, immigration and of course the sciences. It was cool to see everyone's thoughts on France after being here for a while. Mostly, Paris was great because Sasha and I had so much fun together, like usual! And it was nice having someone around when my bank card was taken from me by my bank's ATM the night before I left for London. Luckily, I had Sasha to lend me some money and a credit card (thank you Mom and Dad).

Off to London I went...

And guess who was waiting for me when I arrived to London's Victoria Station after a flight and long bus ride? If anyone knows her you would be shocked but it was Maresa!!! We practically attacked each other with hugs on the busy sidewalk. She looked so London trendy it was kind of shocking. (No more mesh shorts.) But I suppose now she has to fit the part. We then proceeded to navigate the hectic Victoria Station to buy me an underground card and go back to her gorgeous apartment next to Primrose Hill. Another shocker, she knows how to use the underground! She actually looks at maps!!! I was so proud of her.

It was a beautiful day and after we arrived at her very nice apartment I proceeded to take on the role of mom and wash all of the dishes in their apartment (after eating of course). She was sick and I think her and all of her friends are a little exhausted from their fast-paced London lifestyles. They seem to sleep and nap a lot during the day, so I used that time to explore Regent's Park which is right across the street from her apartment, Baker Street (where Sherlock Holmes "lived") and Abbey Road. I also went to an English book store!!!! It was so exciting and I wanted to buy everything. Luckily, I managed to restrain myself.




We all culminated the weekend together by watching the Super Bowl! It was the most American thing I've done in a very long time. I didn't really even know who was playing and I suppose I didn't focus on the game but it was on TV in the background while I chatted with people. The whole weekend was a little bit bizarre because it was like college all over again but it was strangely comforting. And since Maresa was sick, she did not feel the need to go out and party while I was there, which is more fitting to my laid back lifestyle.

After going to sleep at 4 am on Super Bowl night, we woke up so that all of the girls could go off to work for the day. Maresa showed me the super chic neighborhood where she works and then I proceeded to walk through all of London to Victoria Station (my departure point). I don't know why I decided it would be great to traverse all of London with no map, my backpack and a time schedule but it ended up working. (Sometime I really need to go there with a guidebook, or at the very least, a map.) During my walk I stumbled upon many of the landmarks that makes London famous. The following are 2 videos that capture a little bit of my confused experience walking around London.


Finally, I am back in Dijon. And I need to try to do work. So I will return to that task. Until next time...