Barcelona

 

Barcelona was one of the best trips so far, this year. Four days of exploring a beautiful city with some great friends, what more can I ask for? We ate tapas and drank sangria. We didn’t speak the Spanish I had practiced as they don’t speak Spanish in Barcelona. They speak a language that is somewhat similar to Spanish called Catalina, which I didn’t know before.

The weekend before we left, a group of us went to Belgium for Caio’s birthday. We ate at this American, Elvis Presley, Western style restaurant and had a great time dancing and laughing together. The next morning about ten of us realized we had food poisoning.  So I spent my weekend packed for Barcelona, my Euro Trip, and changing families. All while feeling like I was going to die.

Monday morning, I woke up at 5:30 and felt a lot better. Caio, my friend from Brazil, Raphael, Caio’s host brother and I caught the bus at the Gare in Lille and made our way to the airport in Brussels. We hung out in the airport for a while and met Kathryn, Raphael’s friend from London. We flew with Ryanair which, for anyone who’s ever traveled or lived in Europe knows. It is a discount airline and you pay for what you get. The baggage limits are tiny and so are the seats. Whatever, it is cheap. We got on the plane with our tiny pack packs and were eager to land in Spain.

We were all very happy to land in Barcelona and were ready to get. We met another friend of Raphael's friends, Nicolai, there. We took a train to the hostel and Raphael and I managed to fall asleep during the short trip. Traveling is tiring. We checked into the hostel which was in a good location, it was also close to the metro, which was nice too.

We set out and walked to Famillia Ságrada which is a Catherdral that was designed by Gaudi over 120 years ago and is STILL under construction. I was not a huge fan of the Cathedral as the construction made it look bad. But it was so beautiful and I can imagine when it is done it will be magnificent.   We went shopping in little boutiques and I bought a little Spanish change purse. I met a very creepy man who guessed that I was Canadian because I was fumbling between French and English. After we got a coffee because it was a lot colder than we had expected.

We went back to the hotel and had a little nap and get warmer clothes. After talking to the guy at the front desk of the hostel, we went to this little tapas place that he had recommended. On the way there, we met two Americans who were completely lost and couldn’t find their hotel. Instead of searching, they came with us to dinner. We enjoyed octopus legs, shrimp and various sea foods… well everyone else did… not me. After dinner, the metro was closed and we didn’t want to pay for a cab, so we walked for about two hours and saw Barcelona by night. The first day of the trip was great!

The next morning, we set out early and headed to a higher land point of Barcelona. The view of the city was so beautiful. We could see the Famillia Ságrada, many Spanish buildings and then the beach and water. There were palm trees , exotic birds, colourful flowers and it was sunny and warm. We walked through a park which was filled with statues, greenery, fountains and off in the distance we could see a castle. How perfect. There was a pathway that had the tops and bottoms of beer bottles showing and the story was that the workers put all the beer they had drank that year into the walkway. We spent  ome time playing in a children’s music park with music makers, slides, etc. We had a drink looking out over Barcelona and then headed back down to the city. Then we went to the Gothic District of Barcelona. It is one of the main areas and had a lot of shopping, expensive restaurants and a lot of buildings by the architect, Gaudi. They were all different and were so colourful. It was something that was really nice to see. This area also has a lot of shopping, so we looked around for a bit too. We had a nap on rocks along the ocean, it was so perfect.

Our hostel had a kitchen so we made Paila*** for dinner which is a Spanish dish that normally includes, rice, peppers, chicken, seafood and meat.  It was complicated to make but luckily Raphael is a good chef. We enjoyed our Spanish meal and then headed out to a sports bar that is next to the Football Stadium. There was a semi-final game between Chelsea and Barcelona that was a pretty big deal… for those who are soccer fans. Football is massive in Europe, so everyone in Barcelona was excited. We watched the game, and Chelsea ended up winning. I actually saw a Spanish man crying in the streets. We went towards the Stadium and the gates were open. Raphael and Caio wanted to in really bad, so we simply walked in the exit and ended up in the massive stadium. It was really neat. We took a few pictures and then were asked to leave. We listened to Chelsea fans singing and cheering from the upper seats. Englishmen are really passionate about their football. They were not very numerous, but they were sure proud. Caio was searching for this very famous Brazilian reported who is normally at these games, but we didn’t find him. We took the metro home and everyone was so tired, we ended up going to bed right away.

We got up early and the five of us had breakfast together. We planned out our day and then took the metro and god off in a neighbourhood that was less touristic. There were old cement houses, laundry hanging from balconies, old bicycles against the walls, kids playing with some sort of leather ball and old beat up cars. It was as if we had left the city and gone to a little Spanish town. We walked a little further and got back to the crowds of people with camera and tour guides. We were at Gaudi Park which is a beautiful area where 35 houses were supposed to be built, and the government cut the finding after only two were complete. The longest bench in the world is in this park as well and it surrounds an open area. The bench is made from many tiles of different colours, patterns, shapes and sizes. It was quite the sight. We entered one of Gaudi’s houses and it was simple but beautiful.

After Gaudi Park, and a lot of walking, we took a break and had lunch in a little café. After we ate, we took the metro and stumbled across the best market I have ever been to. Sainte Joseph- La Boqueria Market. Imagine this: every fruit you could ever want, all in the same place. Every stand sold freshly squeezed juice for 2 euros, it was delicious. Strawberries that were as big as my fist and bananas smaller than my fingers… It was the most colourful place I had ever seen and I felt like I was in heaven. I was so happy we happened to find it. I bought little flowers that were brightly coloured and dried out. I am sure they were real flowers that were dried and dyed, but the boys insisted they were paper. This is impossible because of the perfect detail they assumed. It was the debate of the trip.

We went to another church and museum that Gaudi had done and there were temporary tennis courts set up to promote a tennis match in Barcelona. There were professional tennis players, playing with kids and Caio, Raphael and I joined. I played with a Spanish player who was not bad to look at. It was so funny. I guess all my years of tennis camp didn’t improve my level that much. There were little kids who were was better than I was… ou la la. I was embarrassed. The boys were laughing at me. We shopped around that area and explored.

Finally we made it to the beach! We played in the sand for a bit but the water was far too cold to go in! There was one man who had just gotten out as we arrived, he must have been crazy!! There was an outdoor gym with stations for pull ups, sit ups, etc. Apparently they have that in many places but I had never heard of it. We slept on cement lounge chairs on the beach for a while but it got too cold so we went back to the hostel. I went to a shopping mall and the others had a nap after we ate dinner. That night we went to an area where there are a lot of bars and then ended the night at a night club. The club was massive and it was really neat inside. We met some people outside the casino and one of them had just won 5000 euros, so he gave me two euros… I was happy.

Raphael, Caio and I got back to the hostel at 5:15, slept for 30 minutes and then had to get up to go to the airport. We took the train, said bye to Raph and then boarded our flight. As soon as we got on the plane, Caio and I both fell asleep. We waited around in the Brussels’ airport for an hour and then took a bus back to Lille.

It was such an amazing trip and I am so glad I went with another exchange student. Caio is one of my closest friends here, so it was perfect. Raphael was a lot of fun as well. He is actually crazier than I am…. If that’s possible. Haha. It was a trip that I will remember forever and I am so happy that I went!

I love Spain!  Viva la Fiesta!

Pâques / Easter

 

So French of me... 

 

Easter egg Hunt 

 

Easter Slippers

 

Fromage

My Easter in France was not that big of a celebration but was still really enjoyable. My host family at the time was the Duponts, who are not very religious and therefore we did not go to church. The morning was relaxed and we kind of hung out and everyone did their own thing. The boys worked at taking town a fence, my mom was in the kitchen and Miso slept, like normal. 

Camille and Pierre came around midday and we had an Easter egg hunt in the garden. The Easter Bunny does not come in France. Instead it’s the “Cloche de Pâques” (Easter Bell) that comes from Rome and passes through the back yards of kids and drops chocolate and presents. We had a little Easter Egg Hunt in the garden and it was Miso’s first. She was really cute and enjoyed it a lot. We all got a wrapped present, a big chocolate bunny and lots of chocolate eggs. Miso and Antoine hid my present in the garden after I had already found it, so while everyone was back inside, in the warmth, I was searching in the bushes for my package. 

After they laughed at me for five minutes, I found it and my host mom had given Miso and I French slippers, the same ones as she brought to Taiwan for all of Flavie’s friends.  It was so nice of her to offer us a present.  We popped a bottle of Champagne and sat around and talked for a while. We had not seen Pierre and Camille for a while, and everyone had been so busy the weeks that followed up to Easter so it was nice to catch up. Miso had finished the ears of her bunny before we had moved to the table for lunch. 

We started with Fois Gras and continued with a little lamb. The poor thing. We also ate beans, potatoes and salad. After the main course, the fromage came out. We had a plate of six different cheeses. Each course was accompanied with a different wine. My host sister told me to take my class of wile and take a picture ‘for the family and Rotary.’  We had an ice cream cake shaped like the Easter Bell that was delicious. 

After three hours of eating and talking, we had tea and coffee and then my host dad drove me to the train station to go to a party. It was such a nice Easter and really relaxing. I was not homesick as I was at Christmas, maybe because it is not as big of a holiday and it was not my first Easter away from my family.  I was happy to be with a bigger family and glad I could teach Miso about the meaning of Easter and why we have Easter in our religion. It was certainly an Easter I will never forget and I was happy to have spent it in France!

Dupont Family

 

 The Whole Family

    

Antoine, Miso and I

 

Camille and I 

I am lucky to have been placed with such a nice family, and another exchange student. My host parents are Martine and Denis and I have a brother named Antoine. I have a host sister, Camille, who lives in Lille with her boyfriend, Pierre. The Duponts have another daughter, Flavie, who is on exchange in Taiwan. I also live with Miso, who was supposed to be with Pascalyne but didn’t work out.

I moved in with the Duponts after the holidays and they took Miso and I to the Alps. It started off to be a great host family from the beginning. My second host family was great, but for some reason it was not the same. In this family, I feel so comfortable and I feel like it is my house. This might have to do with the fact that I was with another Exchange Student but it was different from my other families. 

In my first host family, I was always on edge. Always thinking about what my host mom was doing, thinking or saying about me. It was hard to be relaxed and I never felt at home there. My second host family was great, they were super nice, but again, I never felt like their home was my home. I had the flu while I was there and it was kind of uncomfortable and awkward. I wanted my own parents and my own bed.  At the Dupont house, I felt like I could sleep in until midday if I was tired, eat if I was hungry, and walk around in my pajamas if I wanted to. I had food poisoning while I was there and I was a complete mess but my host mom showed a lot of affection to me, I lay on the couch, sat on the kitchen floor and complained. Those things might seem normal to you, but they are not something I would do in just any host family. They came and checked on me often and it made me feel better just knowing how much they cared. 

My host brother and I get along really well because we are similar in age and although we do not have a lot in common, we’re friends. He really bothers me sometimes when he acts like a child, or when he is in a bad mood, but he’s fine.  Miso, him and I hung out a lot and watched a lot of movies together. He would take us out to Discothèques, drive us places and help us with French. One time, we went out on a Thursday night with his friends and got home at 4:30a.m. and then Miso and I had to get up at 6:00 for school. We both slept in class all day. It was the first time I lived with  a host sibling full time and I was lucky. 

Camille and Pierre didn’t live in the house but they were around often and we went out with them a few times too. They are such a happy couple, kind of like Hailey and Nick, and have such a great sense of humour. I love talking with Camille and fighting with Pierre. My favorite soirees were when they were at home. 

My host parents were so great. They really care about Miso and I and they are always looking out for me. For example, one time my Rotary Club President yelled at me on the phone and I came out of my room crying, and my mom talked to me for a bit and then she said, “Give me his phone number.”  Miso and I heard her speaking sternly with him from her bedroom for a good 15 minutes. And when she was finished she told me how she understood why I was crying, because he was so terrible. And then she told me that she was going to teach Miso and I a life lesson. Basically, she said that there are people in this world who are negative, mean and sad people (she used some gros mots). She said to ignore them. She also told me that when I go to my Rotary meetings, to never look him in the eyes, to look at his forehead to freak him out. She’s the best.  My host dad always lightened up situations and made jokes when my host mom was being strict or stressed. He is really happy all the time and he and I joked around all the time. I was fortunate to have good host parents like that. 

When I moved out of their house, I was so upset but I knew that I was always welcome back. Since then, I have been back a few times and they always text me. My current host family cannot drive me to the airport, so Martine and Denis offered to drive me. They are also having a going away party for Miso and I with our French friends. It is hard to explain why this particular family was so great, they just were. They opened their home and their heart and I guess that’s how I always imagined my host families to be before I went on exchange. I’m so lucky.

           

JRJ á Annecy

 

Jean Carlo with his headphone problem

 The Boat in Strasbourg

 

Traditional dancing

 In Switzerland

 

Annecy

 All the Canadians in France

 Annecy

 

Flag Ceremony

Rotary organized a five day bus trip for the exchange students of my district and the district next to ours. I would like to say that our district is the best in France because the destination of the trip was Annecy, a lovely town in south western France where there was a reunion with all 420 exchange students in France. The meeting was only one night, but our district took us to Luxembourg, Strasbourg and through Germany and made it a little voyage. We’re so lucky and all the other districts were jealous of us.

We met in Lille at 6:30 am on Thursday morning, on route through Belgium and into Luxembourg. I had actually already been to Luxembourg with the Euro section of my school, but it was fine to visit again. There is not a lot to do in the city, but we wandered around and got drinks. We visited a beautiful castle that I had not seen the last time I was there and a nice cathedral. The gardens in Luxembourg are not to be missed, certainly something that caught my attention this time since I was there in December the last time. We got back on the bus and headed back into France and stopped in Strasbourg which is just on the German border. There is a lovely river through the town and we went on a boat cruise where one of my favorite moments of exchange happened. It might not be that funny for you, as a reader. And since you don’t know the people involved, it may be hard to understand. Bref,

The boat cruise had headsets to listen to a tour guide who explained history of buildings and other information. Beside each seat was a little box with buttons to choose from 13 different languages. We have a friend from Brazil named Jean Carlo who is very dramatic and flamboyant, he is very loud and he’s the type of person who either someone loves or hates. His favorite brands are Louis Vuitton and Prada and he wore rain boots and a shirt/sweater set to our sports day. Now that you know a little about Jean… on with the story. Franco and I were sitting behind Jean and Franco kept changing his language and he had no idea what was going on. The man came around to see if all the headsets were working and Jean Carlo said his kept changing and he was not touching the buttons. So the man listened to the tour guide speak in French for about 3 minutes with no changes, gave Jean the ‘you’re crazy’ look and handed it back. As soon as Jean put the headphones back on, we changed it. This went on for an entire hour of us laughing and him keeping his problem to himself and simply changing it back each time.  It was priceless. When we told him, he was swearing in Spanish and Portuguese, hitting us and freaking out. It was such a memorable moment and so funny.

We had some free time in the town and then went to a dinner with Rotarians from Strasbourg. We had Flammekueche which is a plate from France and Germany that is similar to a pizza but with a tart like bottom, crème,  a lot of cheese, ham and onions. It is very traditional. After the meal, we were entertained by traditional dancers from Strasbourg which was a lot of fun. They did their performance and then we got to dance. Of course I volunteered to go on stage and I was terrible. I have no coordination and everyone thought it was hilarious. I also learned how to balance a spoon on my nose so it was a successful night.

 The next day we headed off for Annecy! In the morning, we visited a town called Colmar in France which was a really old city with beautiful buildings, specifically the houses. We went around the town on a little train and it was a lot of fun. We laughed so much for no reason. 

We got back on the bus… we spent a lot of time on the bus, but it was not horrible. We had Australians, New Zealanders, an Argentinian, and a South African arrive in January so this trip gave us the chance to get to know some of them better.  On the bus, Jay and some others played the guitar and we sang, Jarryd and I shared stories about our first host families and consoled each other (haha), I met a girl named Kirana who’s from the other district and we became really close and everyone just goofed around. The Rotarians took the time on the bus to talk to each exchange student and evaluate our French. I didn’t realize, but they did the same thing at Mont Sainte Michel and I was at a level two out of ten. They told me I made a lot of progress and I am at a level eight. I am happy with that.

We went through Switzerland and stopped in a town called Neufchatel for a little break which was a really stunning town. Imagine this: sitting on warm rocks, sun shining down on your face. About five meters from you are big, white swans bobbing on sparkling, blue water. Off in the distance you can see the Alps and to your left and right are green trees and flowers. Perfect.

We got stuck in traffic on the way to Annecy and the events had started before we arrived.  We were the last district to get there and they had already had the opening ceremony, dinner and the disco had begun. It was too bad that we missed all that, but we had a great day anyways.  It was so exciting to see Annie from Simcoe and other people I had met throughout the year. We spent that night catching up with people and dancing!  

The next day we got up early and had a classic French breakfast at the resort which consisted of baguettes, croissants, pain au chocolate and hot chocolate, coffee or tea. We headed to a big conference room and listened to someone talk about something about the Olympics being in Annecy in a few years and about a skier who fell and was paralyzed. To be honest, I didn’t listen to any of it because some friends and I sat at the back and caught up. We were talking and laughing/ sleeping the whole time and had no idea what it was about when it was over. How terrible!

After the meeting was over, all  of us made our way onto boats and headed into the main part of Annecy. It was such a painful process, getting everyone across the lake; it took such a long time, which is expected with 420 students and over 100 Rotarians. The lake was breathtaking. With the Alps in the distance and perfectly clean, fresh water it was hard to not stop for a moment and admire.  There were plenty of photos taken as we were waiting! 

            Once we all got to the other side, a group photo was taken by man who was in a construction lift. He took a picture from bird’s eye view and it turned out really nice. Every country grouped together and were cheering and singing their national anthems. You could imagine how moving it was to see teenagers from over 20 counties together in one place, with no war, laughter and love. It was really special. After the photo, we had some time in a park and then got back on the boats to go back.

            The evening was so nice and a lot of fun. It started with a flag ceremony where each country was represented which was really cool. Then we had a talent show and each district had to prepare something. Personally, I feel my district was the best, but I may be bias. We wrote a song in 11 different languages to the tune of twist and shout. The English verse went like this. “We’re all a big family, BIG FAMILY. District 1520, 1520. From the Nord Pas de Calais, PAS DE CALIS. We’re all a big family. BIG FAMILY.” It was so much fun. Other districts did dances, songs, little sketches, etc. One of my favorites was the Paris district who acted out all of the ‘firsts’ as French Exchange Student. For example, the first day of school, meeting your host family, seeing the Tour Eiffel and getting lost in your own town. It was so realistic and everyone loved it. 

            No district respected the 4 minute limit so the talent show was super long. They had to pause in between and we had dinner. The entrée was shrimps that had really long whiskers and I was freaking out because everyone kept trying to touch me with them. We had a meat and vegetables, cheese and then a pastry of some sort.  The talent show went on for a while then we had another discothèque. It was another great night. We went back to the resort and didn’t go to bed until 5:00. We sat in the halls for a while taking, then some friends and I talked in our room and played guitar. At around 4:30, we heard a commotion in the hall and some stupid kids were throwing toilet paper around and they thought it was funny because it was April Fool’s Day. They got yelled at by a Rotarian, not funny.

           

The next morning we had to go on a hunt for paper fish.  (I got excited because I thought we were actually going fishing) April Fool’s Day is very fish orientated in France. I think it has to do with some old story. There are many games parents trick their kids with, or at school people stick paper fish to each other’s backs… French people… Anyways, our game was to find the 8 different types of fish that were hidden in trees, behind buildings, etc. The trick was that there were really only 7 types hidden.

We had lunch and people started leaving. I said bye to my friends and we all go back on the bus. We got free time in the city of Annecy which was really enjoyable. Everyone was wasting time debating where to go and what to do so Namrata and I decided to go off and explore alone. I bought a chap stick, classic, and then we wandered around and enjoyed the town. Apparently Annecy had the best ice cream in France so, of course, we got some and it was delicious. I was sitting on a bridge enjoying my Snickers ice cream when someone said,  “there is a team over there with Canada jackets.”  So I started singing ‘O Canada’ and one girl turned around and she was a friend from CLAY (a leadership conference I went to). It was so weird! She was in Swiss for a baton twirling competition. What a small world.

We spent the afternoon on the bus and then arrived in Chalons Sur Saône where we went to the hotel and then to a Chinese restaurant and Miso was freaking out. I ate my entire meal with chop sticks because Miso whispered to me that it was embarrassing that some others asked for a knife and fork. I felt obliged. Haha.

The next morning we went to a museum of photography that was called The Nicéphore Niépce Museum and it was super interesting. We saw the first camera that was ever made and it was a massive black, wooden box. We also learned that the first photos took nine minutes, I think, to take and if the person so much as blinked, the photo was ruined. They would tie the children down…

We got back on the bus for the last time and headed back to Lille. When my dad picked Miso and I up I had no voice from yelling and singing all week and my host family made fun of me.

It is hard to explain to you how amazing this trip was, but it was really awesome. I met some of the coolest, nicest, funniest people ever, and I will never forget how much fun I had. I didn't sleep much at all and lost my voice, but it worth it. We had perfect weather and everyone just got along so nicely. I am so lucky to be a Rotary Exchange Student and I love our district. 

Les Alpes

 Racklette

 Miso and our Host Parents

 Miso and I

Prologue:     Miso was supposed to live with Pascalyne, my first host mother, and went there for two weeks. The Dupont family was Miso’s first family and her forth family as well but as her third host family didn’t work out well, she moved to the Dupont’s two months earlier. We are lucky enough to be host sisters for two months until I move to my fourth family. When I returned from my Vacation Host Family on Saturday, Miso was moved in. We left for the Alps on Sunday.

               We hit the road on Sunday morning at 5:30 to traverse the country which should normally take 11 hours. After ten and a half hours of sleeping, eating, little pit stops, watching some guys on scooters showing off, and driving through the beautifully wonderful mountains, we were only half an hour away and I was so excited to arrive. We went to turn onto the last road and it was CLOSED due to a ski slope that passes over it during ski season. We stopped at a nearby café and they informed my host dad that this was a problem he encountered at least three times a day because Google Maps doesn’t know that the road is closed during winter. We had to drive around the mountain which took us three more hours. We peed in the forest and got on our way. We arrived at the Foux d’Allos Ski Station in the dark and were keen to ski the next day. I was looking around and the mountains that surrounded me looked bare, I thought it must be because it was so dark. We unpacked and revved up for our first day of skiing.

               Any skier with kids (or Miso) knows that the first morning of skiing is always really draining.  My mom didn’t ski during the vacation; she walked in the mountains each day. My dad, Miso and I left the condo early to rent skis, get passes, register Miso for lessons and hit the slopes. It was Miso’s first time skiing and her lesson wasn’t until the afternoon, so my host dad and I dropped her off at the condo and we went out alone for a few hours. As we were going up the ski lift, there was literally no snow. I thought you myself, ‘where the heck are we going to ski?’ When we got to the top, there was just enough snow. It was well maintained and you could tell they were really trying to keep it. The slope was covered and the rest was brown or green. Spring skiing.  We went back for lunch then Miso went to her lesson. She was so cute. We went up to the top of the mountain and it was unlike anything I’ve been before. It was wonderful. We could see mountain tops for miles from the summit and I felt like I was on the top of the world. We skied with Miso for a bit and then went in. She was not horrible, but it definitely needed some more work.   That night we went to a little restaurant where we each got a massive pizza.  In France, it is impolite to ask for a ‘doggy bag’ and they mock American movies when someone takes restaurant food home.  After a fighting our host parents to let us take the rest home for lunch tomorrow and laughing for 20 minutes I composed myself and asked for a box. The waitress yes ‘oui’ without hesitating. She was obviously used to tourists. I was such a funny bonding moment with my host family.

               The second day was really tiring. I am out of shape which means that skiing in the soup like snow was hard, really hard. The snow was usually alright at the top of the mountain and in the morning. But when I had to ski with Miso, at the bottom of the mountain, it was so tiring. My host dad and I dropped Miso off at group lessons in the morning and headed to the top of the mountain. It was a little brisk but by midday the temperature was in the plus and a winter coat was far too much. Miso made more progress the second day and we had a lot of fun. She fell a lot and always fell face first so I had a good laugh about every 3 minutes.  We played a complicated card game, ate dinner, connected to the internet and went to bed at a good time.

               It was hard to get up the third morning and then I had a bad morning. (Mom, Dad- I’m sorry if we ever made ski morning like this for you.) My host parents went on a hiking adventure so Miso and I set out early and were waiting in line for tickets at a booth closer to our condo. We waited for them to open late and then found out the credit card machine was not working. We were late for lessons so I skied down to the village quickly while Miso made her way down slowly. I had to go down a million stairs, wait in line and then run up the stairs to give Miso her card before her lesson left without her. It was boiling hot and I was not happy. I got Miso off to her lesson and then got on the chairlift without realizing which one it was. It is a long lasting competition between my sister, cousins and I for who can get chairlift number one. After a morning de merde, I was on chairlift number one and all of my negativity from the morning drifted away as I recalled all my ski adventures with my family at Owl’s Head. It was really weird skiing alone and I was a little nostalgic. At home, even if I wanted to ski alone, it wouldn’t be possible so that was different. I met a few people on the chairlift and had a 10 minute boyfriend who lives in the Alps and makes the signs for the mountain… hahaha.  Actually I just wish he was my boyfriend so I could live in the Alps.  Miso and I both made food that our mothers send us for lunch, she made Taiwanese noodles and I made Kraft Dinner. Miso bought strawberries and we just had a relaxed lunch which was muchly needed. We had a little nap and then went back out for an afternoon of ski. That evening, Miso and I started walking to the Village Center which is normally a 30 minute walk, because it is through the mountains.  I taught Miso what hitch hiking was and then as a car passed we stuck our thumbs out jokingly.  The car turned around and pulled over. After it had turned around, we couldn’t say no, and there was no where they could have kidnapped us to, so we got in. They were really nice and dropped us off right in the center. There was a little market where I found this honey, jam and spreads maker whose last name was Jacquemain (My mom’s maiden name). I bought some honey. After, we had hot chocolate in a little café where we were trying to figure out how to say ”ta guelle” which is a very vulgar way to say shut up. We repeated it numerous times before we figured out how to say it. We were like, “Oui, ga guelle, c’est ca!” But we were saying it really loudly and then realized this family was looking at us. The dad told us of we wanted lessons in French swear words; he was the guy to ask. The kids were laughing so hard. Miso and I were laughing for at least ten minutes and it was the hardest I’d laughed in a while. It was such an exchange student moment. We met up with our parents and had dinner at a restaurant. At the table across from us, I saw my first real Raclette. Normally we put the cheese on a little dish and then into an appliance that heats it. I hadn’t  known but the real Raclette it is block of cheese on a stand and a heater that melts the side. I was so impressed that I went up to them and explained that I was Canadian and had never seen it before. I asked them if I could take a photo and we they said oui! I had a crêpe with cheese and ham and then one with Nutella after. They were delicious, as per normal.

               The last day of skiing was great. It was really warm and sunny. I had a nice, sun glasses, tan by the end of the week and lost a lot of weight from sweating so much. I skied alone after I dropped Miso off and met a retired man on the lift who has a house in the Alps and another one in Nice, France. What a perfect life. So he skis all winter and then relaxes on the beach in the summer. I want to a retirement like that. Miso and I had a quick lunch after she had finished her lesson and then headed back out.  We did a few runs and then stopped at a little bar at the top of the mountain. We had apple juice and enjoyed the sun in reclining chairs. Each day, I took a video of Miso skiing to see her progress and to laugh. We took her last video where she did a beautiful face-plant. It was perfect. But she actually did make a lot of progress over the week. We did a few last runs, I went off some jumps and then we went into the Village to find some souvenirs. We bought some stuff then ran for the bus to take us back to the condo.  Miso and I had a deal the whole week that if I carried her skis, she’d give me a massage each night, so I carried her skis back to the rental shop and we returned our skis. We had a quiet evening and watch all the videos from the week. We had dinner, went online and got some of our stuff packed up.

               We headed home on the Friday morning and it was a long day in the car. I was really tired and anxious to get home as I had a bad headache due to the French, fatigue and altitude change. We had lunch in the mountains on the ‘Route de Napoleon’ at this little restaurant. We stopped in Paris at my host uncle’s house for dinner. He has two daughters who are seriously obsessed with a British Boy Band called, “One Direction.”  The one girl, who was 13, was in a contest that closed that night at midnight. She was getting votes to win a One Direction sweatshirt so the whole meal was based upon that. We continued home and arrived around midnight.

               My ski trip in the Alps was absolutely amazing and I am so lucky to have had the chance to ski in the Alps. I am so happy to have developed a good relationship with my host parents and happy to have done it with Miso with me. The mountains were so beautiful and the atmosphere in the village was really cool. J’adore Les Alpes. I'm so lucky!

The Move, St. Omer- Rotary Weekend and Vacances d'Hiver

 

The Collection

 

A casual Bike ride to Belgium

 

 Carnival

Laurena's Birthday Party

Cap Blanc Nez

 

 Sports Day

A few days after I got home from London, I moved families. I was supposed to go to the Borelle Family’s home but I found out the day before the move that wouldn’t be possible for various reasons. I moved in with the Dupont Family which is great!   I arrived at their house with two big suitcases, a backpack, four giant Ikea sacs and other bags! I do not know how it is possible for one to accumulate so much stuff in six months. They were so welcoming the first night which was good because I was sad to move from the Bernardeaus. I live in a little town called Lorgies which has a church (like every village in France) a small school and a store. It is further from Lille than my other houses but the village is cute.

We had a Rotary weekend in St. Omer and I met the newbies for the first time. There are 11 new exchange students from Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia. We went bowling and had blast! You could imagine how 41 exchange students bowling together would be. What a mess. We met all the French students who will be going on exchange in September and spoke with the people going to our countries. We had presentations and then a dance that night. The next day we went to gigantic underground bunker designed by the Nazis, called La Coupole. It was used to store, prepare and launch rockets during the war and is a museum now. It was interesting for a short while but everyone was so tired so we all napped during the films. As exchange students we learn to stop trying to fight the fatigue and just sleep. That is the biggest lesson I learned in school... The classic cold chicken and other cold pasta salads were served for lunch and then we sat around and waited for our host parents to arrive. The weekend was great, as per usual and I really like most of the newbies.

On the way home from St. Omer, we went to The Carnival in a town called Bailleul and it was crazy. There was a parade with over 50 floats, brass bands and people dancing and singing. Everyone was dressed up like it was Halloween and the ambiance was great. The ground was covered in confetti that had fallen from the sky like snow; most floats had confetti cannons and everyone was throwing it at one another. There are a lot of different carnivals for Mardi Gras in France including two big ones in Paris and Nice and another in Dunkerque.

I was with the Dupont family for another week and then moved in with the Borelles. It was just for the holidays as my host parents were going to be working and I would be stuck in the middle of nowhere for two weeks! It was a perfect break from school because I had no specific plans and I was able to relax. The Borelles live right next a train station so it was really easy for me to go to Lille as I wanted. Early in the break, Celia, Lauren Abby and I rode out bikes to Belgium. It only took about 20 minutes and was the first time Celia and Abby had been to Belgium, which was pretty exciting. We asked some man to take a picture of us with our bikes and the Belgium sign; he was so confused as to why we were so enthused since there is no difference from the French side to the Belgium side. The weather was unpleasant, the town was quiet and there was nothing to do. We went to a grocery store and stocked up on Belgium Chocolate and some other stuff then headed home. I went to Laurena, my best French friend’s birthday party and had another party with the exchange students for Ignacio’s 19^th. One Sunday my host family and I went to Cap Blanc Nez and Cap Gris Nez which are on the Cote d'Opale in the North. It was raining, cold and super windy but was worth it to see the magnificence of the cliffs. Typically, if the weather is good, you can see England (the white cliffs of Dover) but we had no such luck with the weather. We had lunch in Berck, a little town on the ocean, but it was disagreeable beach weather. haha

The second week of vacation was lower key but started with a bang! I woke up on Monday morning, opened my shutters and thought I was still dreaming. It looked like I was opened a Christmas card. There was snowflakes quickly adding to about a foot of snow and I could not believe it. It was a really slushy snow and I didn’t bring my boots, I didn’t think we’d get a snowstorm in May after the warm weather we’d had, so I stayed in for the day.  

After the snow had melted, we had a “Sports Day” at my house. My host family has a massive garden with two football nets, a ping pong table and a volleyball net. We decided, why not change things up from our average afternoons in Lille. Twenty five exchange students came over on an overcast afternoon to hang out and play games. Jean Carlo wearing Gucci jeans and a Louis Vuitton shit sweater set, rain boots and holding his Longchamp sac. He obviously didn’t get the message.  We played an afternoon of mostly football and had such a great time. Everyone was laughing and enjoying themselves.

The vacation was well spent and it was nice to get to know some of the newbies a little better and hang out with friends. Staying with the Borelle family was nice and I really felt at home there. I had a chance to catch up on sleep and relax! It was a good break from Beaucamps and my nine hour school days. I watched lots of French movies and caught up on my online television. I can’t wait until the Vacances de printemps, thank goodness the French love holidays.