This last week in France has been crazy.
Stressful.
Emotional.
Memorable.
Magical.
Beautiful.
Etc...
All week I was stressing because I had finals and a big paper to write, but it all ended with the best. After class on Friday our test ended so quickly and right after, Herve (our "sexy" prof haha) was ready to say goodbye and everyone started to leave... I all of a sudden got really sad and started balling haha. It was the saddest thing to give everyone a hug goodbye. When you spend nearly every day with these people for 4 months, it is heartbreaking to walk away, never knowing if you will see eachother again. =(
But for the positive... Friday morning, when I left the house to go to school, everything was covered in snow!! Of course I have been to the snow many times in my life, but to actually wake up and experience the whole snow overnight thing was just amazing!! I walked to the bus stop, and I kid you not, I was giggling and skipping. I was just so excited!! haha It was seriously the best thing that could have happened on the last day..
Today, Sam, Katie and me (aww the 3 of us.. it was just like in the begining) went out to have our last lunch at the St. James. We shared stories, played our last games of "Perfect Match" and frolicked in the snow!! =) Like I said, it could have not ended any better than having Lyon covered in snow!! AH! I loved it! =)
Also, tonight I had my last dinner with my family. =,( I am was so blessed to have lived with them. They were so nice, so generous, so hospitable.. just the best family that I could have had. I was able to have such an awesome experience thanks to them! I really don't want to leave =( I cried 3 times today already haha.. But it isn't sooo bad, because I know that I am going to come back next year ;)
THIS WAS THE BEST 4 MONTHS OF MY LIFE!
I LOVE FRANCE.
I LOVE FRENCH.
I LOVE ALL MY FRIENDS THAT I MADE HERE.
VOUS ALLEZ ME MANQUER.
VIVE LA FRANCE.
and since you soon.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Le dernier voyage a Paris
I spent this weekend in Paris with my host family and it was great! =)
It was cool because since my host mom is from Paris, I was able to enjoy it differently than the average touriste. I actually did NO touristy things (well almost). The first day we hung out with my mom's friend Judith. She had private invitations to some boutiques around Paris and I got to go with her and Anne! =) It was so awesome! This boutique sale we went to was filled with about 60 different designers who were selling their couture clothes, accessories and home decor. It was such a cool experience. And I bought some Christmas presents here for a couple of people back home, so be as excited as I was please!! haha.
Ew.. (this is for Anne haha) um.. this day for lunch, everyone (expect me) ate the head of a pig.. and when I say head, I don't mean it was just meat from the head, I mean the HEAD was on the table. The most disgusting display of "food" I have ever seen. Look:
Yea.. anyway.. That is Nicolas (Judith's husband) who thought that it was funny that I was grossed out by this haha. Because I am "in France" I had to try this "French specialty," but after the first bite, I denied the rest haha. Judith's daughter was hilarious, she kept looking and the pieces she was eating (i: the eye and the meat around the jaw and teeth EEWW!!!) and she was saying "Oh, c'est beau ca!" translation: Oh, this is beautiful! Haha she probably said it 10 times, no joke.
Sunday I woke up and it was snowing in Paris! =) It didn't last long, but it was the perfect moment! I then hung out with Anne, Jean-Marc and Zoe (all my family) and we went to le Sacre-Coeur and walked around Montmartre.
Anne also took me to the Galerie Lafayette because the huge Paris mall has special decorations for Christmas time.. The showcase windows were absolutely fabulous! Look:
OH!! And I went to the best second-hand thrift store I have ever been to in my life!! I'm a bit low on the cash, so I didn't buy anything, but it is a MUST that when I come back to Paris, I visit this thrift store! It is on la rue des Martyrs. Dont Forget! ;)
I'm so glad that I got to go to Paris one more time before I go home. I go home in 6 days now. These passed four months have past by way too quickly.
As they say, Je t'aime, Paris!
It was cool because since my host mom is from Paris, I was able to enjoy it differently than the average touriste. I actually did NO touristy things (well almost). The first day we hung out with my mom's friend Judith. She had private invitations to some boutiques around Paris and I got to go with her and Anne! =) It was so awesome! This boutique sale we went to was filled with about 60 different designers who were selling their couture clothes, accessories and home decor. It was such a cool experience. And I bought some Christmas presents here for a couple of people back home, so be as excited as I was please!! haha.
Ew.. (this is for Anne haha) um.. this day for lunch, everyone (expect me) ate the head of a pig.. and when I say head, I don't mean it was just meat from the head, I mean the HEAD was on the table. The most disgusting display of "food" I have ever seen. Look:
Yea.. anyway.. That is Nicolas (Judith's husband) who thought that it was funny that I was grossed out by this haha. Because I am "in France" I had to try this "French specialty," but after the first bite, I denied the rest haha. Judith's daughter was hilarious, she kept looking and the pieces she was eating (i: the eye and the meat around the jaw and teeth EEWW!!!) and she was saying "Oh, c'est beau ca!" translation: Oh, this is beautiful! Haha she probably said it 10 times, no joke.
Sunday I woke up and it was snowing in Paris! =) It didn't last long, but it was the perfect moment! I then hung out with Anne, Jean-Marc and Zoe (all my family) and we went to le Sacre-Coeur and walked around Montmartre.
Anne also took me to the Galerie Lafayette because the huge Paris mall has special decorations for Christmas time.. The showcase windows were absolutely fabulous! Look:
OH!! And I went to the best second-hand thrift store I have ever been to in my life!! I'm a bit low on the cash, so I didn't buy anything, but it is a MUST that when I come back to Paris, I visit this thrift store! It is on la rue des Martyrs. Dont Forget! ;)
I'm so glad that I got to go to Paris one more time before I go home. I go home in 6 days now. These passed four months have past by way too quickly.
As they say, Je t'aime, Paris!
My weekend in Geneve, Switzerland.
December 4, 5 and 6 2009. Geneve, Switzerland and the French border.
This weekend was one of the best weekends of my life, seriously. I have two friends (french friends) named Mathéa and Gaby who I have been very happy to meet while my stay here in France. They both live next to Genève and invited me and my friend Meg over to their houses for the weekend. It was absolutely beautiful! Mathéa took me and Meg to Genève Saturday where we saw the beautiful Alpes over Lake Léman and the Geneve L'Escalade festival =)
Mathea, me and Meg
Sunday morning was magical. First Meg and I took a walk in the open countryside of France with Mathea's momma (sweetest little thing) and we were sounded by open fields of grass and snowy Alpes. One of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. It was like a dream. When we came back, we drank homemade swiss hot choclate (by Coki, Mathea's mom) in front of the fire and sang French songs =) Mathea and her mom are so talented. At first they sang a song called, "Dis, quand reviendras-tu?" harmonizing with her mom playing the guitar; it made me cry, one because it was so pretty but also because at that moment I really realized how much I was going to miss France. Please listen to the video below. It is of Meg, Gaby, Coki and Mathea singing a famous French song called "Tous les garçons et les filles." This was worth the whole weekend to me.
This weekend was one of the best weekends of my life, seriously. I have two friends (french friends) named Mathéa and Gaby who I have been very happy to meet while my stay here in France. They both live next to Genève and invited me and my friend Meg over to their houses for the weekend. It was absolutely beautiful! Mathéa took me and Meg to Genève Saturday where we saw the beautiful Alpes over Lake Léman and the Geneve L'Escalade festival =)
Mathea, me and Meg
Sunday morning was magical. First Meg and I took a walk in the open countryside of France with Mathea's momma (sweetest little thing) and we were sounded by open fields of grass and snowy Alpes. One of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. It was like a dream. When we came back, we drank homemade swiss hot choclate (by Coki, Mathea's mom) in front of the fire and sang French songs =) Mathea and her mom are so talented. At first they sang a song called, "Dis, quand reviendras-tu?" harmonizing with her mom playing the guitar; it made me cry, one because it was so pretty but also because at that moment I really realized how much I was going to miss France. Please listen to the video below. It is of Meg, Gaby, Coki and Mathea singing a famous French song called "Tous les garçons et les filles." This was worth the whole weekend to me.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
I love France too much.
All I wanted from my experience in France were 2 things: Become fluent, and figure out what I wanted to do with my life...
Well I have got more or less than that. I am not fluent, unfortuneately, and I still don't know what to do with my life. However, I have made some real awesome friends, I have had the opportunity to see more of Europe than I thought that I would have ever seen. It has been an experience of a life time that I do not want to end. I only have 2 weeks left from today til I will be home in California, and don't get me wrong, I am excited to come home (I wanna see my family and friends), but I am so terribly sad to leave.
If I have any idea what my next step is after school, I would like to return to France and teach English in the elementary schools here. I am not finished with this place. Il faut que je doive revenir a la France. Mega emphasis. I will be fluent someday. C'est "Le Fabuleux Destin de Mallory Venema."
Well I have got more or less than that. I am not fluent, unfortuneately, and I still don't know what to do with my life. However, I have made some real awesome friends, I have had the opportunity to see more of Europe than I thought that I would have ever seen. It has been an experience of a life time that I do not want to end. I only have 2 weeks left from today til I will be home in California, and don't get me wrong, I am excited to come home (I wanna see my family and friends), but I am so terribly sad to leave.
If I have any idea what my next step is after school, I would like to return to France and teach English in the elementary schools here. I am not finished with this place. Il faut que je doive revenir a la France. Mega emphasis. I will be fluent someday. C'est "Le Fabuleux Destin de Mallory Venema."
Sunday, November 29, 2009
London Bridge is falling down... but I never saw it.
In 2005, I left a piece of my heart in London, so this past weekend I went to go get it back! =)
Who went? Me, Sam, Mathea, Gabi and Lily. (The 3 girls are our wonderful and adorable french friends)
When did we go? Thursday night, Friday, Saturday, got home Sunday morning.
Where did we stay? Hottananny's Hostel.. haha. This hostel had some crazy Rasta party to welcome us at 12:30AM friday morning and continued to keep up this reputation every night. Louie, our 23 year old French British "man in charge," was legit. We shared a room with a Polish family and their 27 year old son tried so hard to hit on me Mathea and Gabi.. haha eww..
What did our trip consist of? Well, Friday Sam and I went to Oxford because he had an interview with Dr. Parkin aka: really legit "man in charge" who is going ot admit Sam into Oxford for Grad school.. also, I wanted to see the real Hogwarts.. Many of you may be thinking, WHAT?! The Real Hogwarts!?! Yes, its true. Many scenes in Harry Potter were filmed at Oxford.
The dining hall
was used in the first film, but due to the director's misunderstanding that students eat 3 times a day in the hall, they had to build their own set, but it was still modeled after this dining hall!! =) Also, Lewis Carrol, writer of Alice in Wonderland, attended this school and some of the scenes he wrote were also indspired by things at Oxford, aka: I saw the gold Queen's heads on top on poles in the fireplace (in the dining room).
Also, this large courtyard was used for some outside scenes on the Hogwarts school campus. Other scenes were filmed here too, but I don't have pictures of them (ie: the wall with writing that the Chamber of Secrets has been open, etc..)
Saturday, Sam and I attempted to go to Stonehenge, =( but it didn't happen. As you all know, my money situation is not the greatest, so a 50 pound train ticket was no agreeable with me. Instead we went to the AWESOME free museums =) The National Gallery and the British Museum.
I saw for the second time =) one of my fav. paintings.
Jan Van Eyck's Arnolfini Wedding Portrait.. also Bronzino's An Allegory with Venus and Cupid. =) At the British Museum we saw the oh-so-controversial and very famous Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, along with the Rosetta Stone which is the only artifact that has ever helped us crack Heiroglyphics.
Apart from our museum trips, we hung out with the other 3 girls and went to Camden Town. Camden Town has this awesome cheap market with so many awesome clothes, shoes, accesories, you name it.. I LOVED it naturally, however, it made me depressed because I couldn't buy anything. boo =(
I think that it is very necessary to add pictures from out TUBE trips. =) Enjoy the following:
AKA: Everything I saw in the TUBE that got me really excited. ;)
I also rode a Double Decker red bus at 5AM... I felt like I was on the Knight Bus in the Prisonser of Azkaban .. ;)
And p.s.. France has style.. classy style.. but LONDON knows where the FASHION is at, let me just tell ya. geesh.
Who went? Me, Sam, Mathea, Gabi and Lily. (The 3 girls are our wonderful and adorable french friends)
When did we go? Thursday night, Friday, Saturday, got home Sunday morning.
Where did we stay? Hottananny's Hostel.. haha. This hostel had some crazy Rasta party to welcome us at 12:30AM friday morning and continued to keep up this reputation every night. Louie, our 23 year old French British "man in charge," was legit. We shared a room with a Polish family and their 27 year old son tried so hard to hit on me Mathea and Gabi.. haha eww..
What did our trip consist of? Well, Friday Sam and I went to Oxford because he had an interview with Dr. Parkin aka: really legit "man in charge" who is going ot admit Sam into Oxford for Grad school.. also, I wanted to see the real Hogwarts.. Many of you may be thinking, WHAT?! The Real Hogwarts!?! Yes, its true. Many scenes in Harry Potter were filmed at Oxford.
The dining hall
was used in the first film, but due to the director's misunderstanding that students eat 3 times a day in the hall, they had to build their own set, but it was still modeled after this dining hall!! =) Also, Lewis Carrol, writer of Alice in Wonderland, attended this school and some of the scenes he wrote were also indspired by things at Oxford, aka: I saw the gold Queen's heads on top on poles in the fireplace (in the dining room).Also, this large courtyard was used for some outside scenes on the Hogwarts school campus. Other scenes were filmed here too, but I don't have pictures of them (ie: the wall with writing that the Chamber of Secrets has been open, etc..)
Saturday, Sam and I attempted to go to Stonehenge, =( but it didn't happen. As you all know, my money situation is not the greatest, so a 50 pound train ticket was no agreeable with me. Instead we went to the AWESOME free museums =) The National Gallery and the British Museum.
I saw for the second time =) one of my fav. paintings.
Jan Van Eyck's Arnolfini Wedding Portrait.. also Bronzino's An Allegory with Venus and Cupid. =) At the British Museum we saw the oh-so-controversial and very famous Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, along with the Rosetta Stone which is the only artifact that has ever helped us crack Heiroglyphics.Apart from our museum trips, we hung out with the other 3 girls and went to Camden Town. Camden Town has this awesome cheap market with so many awesome clothes, shoes, accesories, you name it.. I LOVED it naturally, however, it made me depressed because I couldn't buy anything. boo =(
I think that it is very necessary to add pictures from out TUBE trips. =) Enjoy the following:
AKA: Everything I saw in the TUBE that got me really excited. ;)
I also rode a Double Decker red bus at 5AM... I felt like I was on the Knight Bus in the Prisonser of Azkaban .. ;)
And p.s.. France has style.. classy style.. but LONDON knows where the FASHION is at, let me just tell ya. geesh.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
les choses qui vont me manquer
I have 26 more days in France, and it feels like I got here 2 weeks ago. =(
I'm begining to make note of the things that I am going to miss here. The following are just a few that have stood out recently:
1) The little song "da Da DA da" at the begning of SNCF announcements. SNCF is the company name for the French train stations and at every train station in France, this lady comes over the announcement giving details about arriving and departing trains. The announcement is introduced with a little song and it is SO ANNOYING.. however, I am truly going to miss it once I am gone =(
2) Lyon is absolutely beautiful at night. The reflection of the buildings and lights off of Le Rhone is breathtaking. I have also taken for granted the gorgeous Fourvriere Cathedral... I see it everyday and treat it as if it just sits up on the hill acting as the water tower in Oakdale.. =(
3) The luxury of walking into a beautifully displayed patisserie and getting greeted with "Messieurs, Mesdames, Bonjour!" by the same lady every time... then proceeding to buy an absolutely declicious maracroon or tarte.
However, I will NOT EVER miss the French Arabs and their disgusting ways of "picking up".. I will punch the next Arab that says to me, "Bonsoir fille."
I'm begining to make note of the things that I am going to miss here. The following are just a few that have stood out recently:
1) The little song "da Da DA da" at the begning of SNCF announcements. SNCF is the company name for the French train stations and at every train station in France, this lady comes over the announcement giving details about arriving and departing trains. The announcement is introduced with a little song and it is SO ANNOYING.. however, I am truly going to miss it once I am gone =(
2) Lyon is absolutely beautiful at night. The reflection of the buildings and lights off of Le Rhone is breathtaking. I have also taken for granted the gorgeous Fourvriere Cathedral... I see it everyday and treat it as if it just sits up on the hill acting as the water tower in Oakdale.. =(
3) The luxury of walking into a beautifully displayed patisserie and getting greeted with "Messieurs, Mesdames, Bonjour!" by the same lady every time... then proceeding to buy an absolutely declicious maracroon or tarte.
However, I will NOT EVER miss the French Arabs and their disgusting ways of "picking up".. I will punch the next Arab that says to me, "Bonsoir fille."
Saturday, November 21, 2009
My Eclipse experience.
I finished reading the book Eclipse last night. =) Um.. this is what I think about it:
I almost cried like 3 times haha Only because I love Edward Cullen so much and I wish that he would ask me to marry him! I hate Jacob Black. haha. Okay, hate is a strong word, but in real life, if I knew the guy, I would tell him that he did this to himself and should have not gotten in between Bella and Edward's relationship!! UGH! haha Althouh, because I haven't yet read all the books, I don't know if Jacob "imprinted" Bella or not, so I don't know how much he could have helped being destined with her.. But still, even if that is the case, I still choose Team Edward. Some may think that I choose him just because of my ridiculous infatuation with Robert Pattinson, but no really, Edward's character is perfect and second he happens to be played by Robert... haha jk. ;) I also do not like Bella Swan, I cannot believe that that girl just thought that she could cheat on a perfect man like Edward!! Wow! stupid girl. I don't understand how Stephenie Meyer just decided to have Bella love Jake back. I feel like she wrote Bella's character as never loving Jacob romantically, and then all of a sudden, she did.. it was a bit weird. I guess it made for a better book, I don't know.
All I DO know, is that I am going to get Breaking Dawn today so I can figure out what Robert Pattinson is going to do at the end of this story haha.
ECLIPSE MOVIE:
So, this movie was directed my a different director that New Moon. Its weird that they are changing directors for every movie, because they are all going to be so different than each other.. but maybe this is a good thing. (I hope) Anyway, the director is David Slade. He hasn't directed much, mostly music videos and 2 other films than Eclipse. If any of you have seen Hard Candy, he directed that. I liked that movie, but it was a bit weird and twisted. Apparently he is going to bring a real dark edge to this third Twilight. I really hope its great! It comes out June 30, 2010. SO SOON!! Im so stoked!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
New Moon :: Tentation
I want to blog about New Moon before it is released all over the world.
Last night, November 18, I had the opportunity to see New Moon. =D Two days before the states, so naturally, I want to proclaim this haha. Because I saw it in France, it had French subtitles, and was called Tentation (meaning "temptation") but that did not interfere at all with the movie being more than satisfying. =)
I absolutely loved New Moon. Because there was a new director, it is so different! But different in a good way. I felt like the level of fantasy was raised, which was cool because Twilight didn't have any element of fantasy to it. . . however I'm still not sure how I feel about that that because I think the reason I liked Twilight so much was because it was real, or seemed real to me at least. I want to go see it again though, and maybe I will change my mind lol. I think that Kristen Stewart did such a better job acting this time. I just feel like I could relate with her when she was without Edward. Her depression, emptiness and thought that Edward was never coming back was so convincing.. I loved the scenes where she would scream in her bed. Someone told me that they hated that part because they thought it was a little extreme, but I disagree, I feel like that would really happen in real life. I pretty much almost cried like 3 times in the movie haha I didn't, but I almost did...
I am pleased to see that there were also some really cheesy parts in the movie that made the crowd laugh.. What would Twilight be without really cheesy quotes? haha So.. Jasper Hale.. poor guy. There is a quote at the end of the movie that was just ridiculous haha Bella is asking the Cullens if they will agree to make her a vampire, and Jasper says something like "Yes, so I won't always want to kill you..." my goodness.. really script writer? It might not be that funny quoted, but you should have seen the actors face when he said it.. lol. Also, poor Mike Newton.. the actor gained like 25 lbs and looked like a creepy 40 yr old man haha Plus his character his super cheesy anyway, so I just felt like the actor got the short end of the stick for this movie. =| bummer.
Just a few more comments: I absolutely love the soundtrack. love love love it. Every song. Kristen Stewart actually looked pretty in this movie. Angela looked really good too. I don't think I like how the vampires look more like vampires ... the make-up was a but different, which wasn't bad, but the contacts were a more extreme yellow and I just feel like it was too noticeable if they are supposed to be in the real world... and they all looked older to me =| I hope they can keep them all from aging by the Breaking Dawn movie. Umm.. I am not a fan of Jacob Black p.s. Yea, his body is nice, and it looks like he would be very nice to hug lol BUT I just don't like how he thinks that he can just step in between the love of Edward and Bella.. but that is the book, not the movie, so that is the end of that. I just love Edward Cullen.. I want my own Edward Cullen. =|
Enjoy the movie U.S. =)
Last night, November 18, I had the opportunity to see New Moon. =D Two days before the states, so naturally, I want to proclaim this haha. Because I saw it in France, it had French subtitles, and was called Tentation (meaning "temptation") but that did not interfere at all with the movie being more than satisfying. =)
I absolutely loved New Moon. Because there was a new director, it is so different! But different in a good way. I felt like the level of fantasy was raised, which was cool because Twilight didn't have any element of fantasy to it. . . however I'm still not sure how I feel about that that because I think the reason I liked Twilight so much was because it was real, or seemed real to me at least. I want to go see it again though, and maybe I will change my mind lol. I think that Kristen Stewart did such a better job acting this time. I just feel like I could relate with her when she was without Edward. Her depression, emptiness and thought that Edward was never coming back was so convincing.. I loved the scenes where she would scream in her bed. Someone told me that they hated that part because they thought it was a little extreme, but I disagree, I feel like that would really happen in real life. I pretty much almost cried like 3 times in the movie haha I didn't, but I almost did...
I am pleased to see that there were also some really cheesy parts in the movie that made the crowd laugh.. What would Twilight be without really cheesy quotes? haha So.. Jasper Hale.. poor guy. There is a quote at the end of the movie that was just ridiculous haha Bella is asking the Cullens if they will agree to make her a vampire, and Jasper says something like "Yes, so I won't always want to kill you..." my goodness.. really script writer? It might not be that funny quoted, but you should have seen the actors face when he said it.. lol. Also, poor Mike Newton.. the actor gained like 25 lbs and looked like a creepy 40 yr old man haha Plus his character his super cheesy anyway, so I just felt like the actor got the short end of the stick for this movie. =| bummer.
Just a few more comments: I absolutely love the soundtrack. love love love it. Every song. Kristen Stewart actually looked pretty in this movie. Angela looked really good too. I don't think I like how the vampires look more like vampires ... the make-up was a but different, which wasn't bad, but the contacts were a more extreme yellow and I just feel like it was too noticeable if they are supposed to be in the real world... and they all looked older to me =| I hope they can keep them all from aging by the Breaking Dawn movie. Umm.. I am not a fan of Jacob Black p.s. Yea, his body is nice, and it looks like he would be very nice to hug lol BUT I just don't like how he thinks that he can just step in between the love of Edward and Bella.. but that is the book, not the movie, so that is the end of that. I just love Edward Cullen.. I want my own Edward Cullen. =|
Enjoy the movie U.S. =)
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
La France, la gastronomique capital du monde.
The subject of this blog addresses France as the capital of the art and science of food (gastronomy). If you did not know this as a fact, you know now. In addition, apparently Lyon is the gastronomic capital of France (according to many references on my google search engine), however I would have to disagree with this because then wouldn't that make Lyon the gastonomic capital of the entire world? and I will tell you that I have not had "the best" food here in Lyon... that was in Italy. ;) yea yea.
I am discussing this issue because France has really got there act together when it comes to cheese (fromage in french) and I haven't even discussed the wonderful chesses (besides the Raclette) that I have had here. To be honest, I can't even describe them all because there are so many! But believe me when I tell you that I am not even that big of a chesse fan in America, but here I am!
So different kinds of cheeses are produced all over this country and the names for the cheeses are taken after the region from where they come.. Some of you may have already known this, but Brie is a region as well as Camambert, Roquefort and Beaufort. I once tried Chevre (goat cheese) that had raisins in it... and another Chevre with chuncks of pepper, my goodness, it was the best flavored cheese of my life!! Chevre with honey is amazing as well!! mmmm.. There is this restaurant in Lyon called "l'epicerie" that sells specialty "tartines," which are basically pieces of toast (good toast from homemade bread, not like a loaf of wonder bread put in the toaster), and they put different cheeses, meats etc.. but the one that is my favorite is the tartine with melted chevre and honey.. SO AMAZING!!
The best part though is that my host mom made fondue last night, and to any of you who ever tried the fondue at the Nutcraker in Oakdale will know what Im talking about... her fondue was the best fondue that I have ever had. . . It beat the Nutcracker.. It had the same delicious strong flavor, but it wasn't as heavy as the Nutcraker and you could tell that it was made with real cheese and not processed Velveeta lol. It was so good!
I wish I could take some of the cheeses over to the states for my dad to try, cause he loooooves cheese, but I don't think I can do that unfortunately. =|
Fun Fact:
When the surrealist painter Salvador Dali came to New York for the first time he described it as being "A gothic Roquefort!" Here is a picture of Roquefort cheese:
Its a blue cheese, that apparently reminds Salvador Dali of New York lol I don't know why.. maybe because the gothic adjective denotes the tall and complex buildings in NY and the strong moldy cheese denotes diversity and strong personalities? lol I dont know. But I thought it was a fun fact.
I am discussing this issue because France has really got there act together when it comes to cheese (fromage in french) and I haven't even discussed the wonderful chesses (besides the Raclette) that I have had here. To be honest, I can't even describe them all because there are so many! But believe me when I tell you that I am not even that big of a chesse fan in America, but here I am!
So different kinds of cheeses are produced all over this country and the names for the cheeses are taken after the region from where they come.. Some of you may have already known this, but Brie is a region as well as Camambert, Roquefort and Beaufort. I once tried Chevre (goat cheese) that had raisins in it... and another Chevre with chuncks of pepper, my goodness, it was the best flavored cheese of my life!! Chevre with honey is amazing as well!! mmmm.. There is this restaurant in Lyon called "l'epicerie" that sells specialty "tartines," which are basically pieces of toast (good toast from homemade bread, not like a loaf of wonder bread put in the toaster), and they put different cheeses, meats etc.. but the one that is my favorite is the tartine with melted chevre and honey.. SO AMAZING!!
The best part though is that my host mom made fondue last night, and to any of you who ever tried the fondue at the Nutcraker in Oakdale will know what Im talking about... her fondue was the best fondue that I have ever had. . . It beat the Nutcracker.. It had the same delicious strong flavor, but it wasn't as heavy as the Nutcraker and you could tell that it was made with real cheese and not processed Velveeta lol. It was so good!
I wish I could take some of the cheeses over to the states for my dad to try, cause he loooooves cheese, but I don't think I can do that unfortunately. =|
Fun Fact:
When the surrealist painter Salvador Dali came to New York for the first time he described it as being "A gothic Roquefort!" Here is a picture of Roquefort cheese:
Its a blue cheese, that apparently reminds Salvador Dali of New York lol I don't know why.. maybe because the gothic adjective denotes the tall and complex buildings in NY and the strong moldy cheese denotes diversity and strong personalities? lol I dont know. But I thought it was a fun fact.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Passion Pit in Lyon
This is me with Passion Pit's set list that I stole from the stage tonight and got told, "This is my stage love, can you please get off.." haha why do I always get kicked out/off of things haha
Anyway.. Passion Pit (awesome band from Massechusettes) came to Lyon tonight =D It was so much fun! They played such an awesome show! I have never seen so many Americans in one spot in France before though haha The band that opened was called the Kissaway Trail, they were really good too.. check them out!
I love a crowd that gets down boogey.
(Paris, Rome, Florence pics coming soon. Im sorrrry.. Im lazy.)
p.s. Not only was today a holiday for America, but France celebrates it too. No school or work for peeps today. It is called Armistice Day.. celebration for the day the world war II ended.. cool huh? Its like a worldly holiday. ;) i
Monday, November 9, 2009
Best week of my life in a nutshell.
I can't believe I haven't written in 2 weeks! Man do I have a trip to write about.
I must pick up from where I left off. Last thing that I wrote about were our problems with trains and meg's baggage, but after such terrible things, we had the most successful trip of my life. I had told you, however, that we were leacing Monday for Florence.. weellll, Meg and I were only slightly irresponsible and missed that train haha yea, I know, how could we have done that?! Well, we were determined to go somewhere because we had stayed in Lyon for 3 nights already, so we went to the train station and begged the nice French later to get us somewhere, she said that it was impossible again to go anywhere, but after talking to her for about 20 minutes, she agreed to fit us on a full train to Paris that was leaving in 20 minutes... of coures, we took it. So that Monday, when we were supposed to go to Florence, we went to Paris. Then we made a reservation for an over night train to Rome Wednesday night.
When we got to Paris, it was 8:30, we had no idea what to do or where to go so we romed around for a while until we found an internet cafe where we could google hostels. We found one that Katie had recomended and then we went on search for it. Oh my dear, the search was awful. I think Meg and I walked around Paris for probably 2 miles until we finally found the hostel, by this time is was past midnight. We had some issues getting in because obviously at last minutes, the hostel was booked, but our dear friend at the counter hooked us up and gave us a private room for the price of a 4 person dorm room.. YES! Meg and I spent our first day in Paris on a free tour of the city where we saw everthing and got to climb the Eiffel Tower at night! The next day we went to the Louvre where I got to see my favorite sculpture (Nike of Samothrace) and the Musee d'Orsay where I got to see works by two of my favorite painters (Edouard Manet and Vincent Van Gogh) aaaaammmaazing!
Wednesday night we took an overnight train to Rome where I had the worst sleep that I have ever had in my entire 21 years of living.. seriously. The cabins fit 6 people and the beds are stacked on top of eachother like a bunk bed with 3 beds would be. I was on the bottom and the bed or whatever you want to call it, sunk it diagonally so I was like falling into a crevice. It was freezing, the pillow was about square foot and I hated it... lol but we arrive in Rome at 10 AM and didn't even know that we were in for the biggest treat of our lives! =] Meagan's mommy was the sweetest thing ever and bought us two nights at a hotel in Rome so we would havent to search, pay or stay in some crummy place for two more nights. That day Meg and I walked all over Rome! It was shockingly small enough to be able to walk everywhere!! But I guess that makes sense because when the Romans were buidling awesome monuments like the Coleseum and Pantheon, they pretty much walked everywhere too, so they kept everything close ;) I cannot even explain in words how amazing it was to see Rome. Everywhere you turn there is history and beauty.. my goodness, it was incredible. Seriously, when I saw the Coleseum at a distance all lit up (it was the first time) I like freaked out and ran towards it haha. I could not shut up about how pretty and surreal it was. The next day we woke up early and went to the Vatican. =] You know Renaissance painting everywhere! =D Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel and Raphel's "School of Athens".. unreal. There was also this Dadism/Surrealism exposition at a museum in Rome that I went into a saw Marcel Duchamps famous toilet ("Fountain") haha which was prettty cool!
The next morning we left for Florence (730AM) so we arrive there around 9AM where we imediately settled in and set off for the Florence Cathedral. The church was so pretty! I would have never imagined it to be that pretty in real life! It was so colorful with marble and the designs were far more elaborate that it ever looked in pictures! The facade reminded us a lot of "Its a Small World" ride at Disneyland lol. Anyway, we walk to the very top of Brunelleshci's dome! AH! =] so cool and look out over Tuscany Florence (beautiful) Then we went off to the Galleria dell'Academia. . . do you know what is there? The giant, the perfect, the beautiful white marble sculpture of David.. now that was a dream. Seriously. I walked around the corner and there he was alluminated under this globed ceiling, it was so great! Then that night, since it was Halloween, we went to this club called "Space Electronica" and hahaha my goodness, this was that icing to our cake.. Space club was so legit.. they were playing awesome music, there were hundreds of people there dressed up for Halloween, there were like 3 levels and Meg and I met some hottie Australians.. lol it was just a lot of fun. We left the next morning, sadly, but very pleased with our trip.
I know that was kind of long, but I still didn't include all details. I do find it very important, however, to note some of the best things we found in Italy.
1) Best Lasagna
2) Best Tiramisu
3) Best Gelato times 5
4) Best Capuccinos and Lattes
5) Not best pizzza =( unfortunate
6) Best Club
7) Best leather gloves (which I bought in Florence.. so classy.)
8) Best water
hmm.. and I actually think there is more.. but this blog is already days long. Pictures will appear in a seperate blog! Yay!
I LOVE ITALY!
I must pick up from where I left off. Last thing that I wrote about were our problems with trains and meg's baggage, but after such terrible things, we had the most successful trip of my life. I had told you, however, that we were leacing Monday for Florence.. weellll, Meg and I were only slightly irresponsible and missed that train haha yea, I know, how could we have done that?! Well, we were determined to go somewhere because we had stayed in Lyon for 3 nights already, so we went to the train station and begged the nice French later to get us somewhere, she said that it was impossible again to go anywhere, but after talking to her for about 20 minutes, she agreed to fit us on a full train to Paris that was leaving in 20 minutes... of coures, we took it. So that Monday, when we were supposed to go to Florence, we went to Paris. Then we made a reservation for an over night train to Rome Wednesday night.
When we got to Paris, it was 8:30, we had no idea what to do or where to go so we romed around for a while until we found an internet cafe where we could google hostels. We found one that Katie had recomended and then we went on search for it. Oh my dear, the search was awful. I think Meg and I walked around Paris for probably 2 miles until we finally found the hostel, by this time is was past midnight. We had some issues getting in because obviously at last minutes, the hostel was booked, but our dear friend at the counter hooked us up and gave us a private room for the price of a 4 person dorm room.. YES! Meg and I spent our first day in Paris on a free tour of the city where we saw everthing and got to climb the Eiffel Tower at night! The next day we went to the Louvre where I got to see my favorite sculpture (Nike of Samothrace) and the Musee d'Orsay where I got to see works by two of my favorite painters (Edouard Manet and Vincent Van Gogh) aaaaammmaazing!
Wednesday night we took an overnight train to Rome where I had the worst sleep that I have ever had in my entire 21 years of living.. seriously. The cabins fit 6 people and the beds are stacked on top of eachother like a bunk bed with 3 beds would be. I was on the bottom and the bed or whatever you want to call it, sunk it diagonally so I was like falling into a crevice. It was freezing, the pillow was about square foot and I hated it... lol but we arrive in Rome at 10 AM and didn't even know that we were in for the biggest treat of our lives! =] Meagan's mommy was the sweetest thing ever and bought us two nights at a hotel in Rome so we would havent to search, pay or stay in some crummy place for two more nights. That day Meg and I walked all over Rome! It was shockingly small enough to be able to walk everywhere!! But I guess that makes sense because when the Romans were buidling awesome monuments like the Coleseum and Pantheon, they pretty much walked everywhere too, so they kept everything close ;) I cannot even explain in words how amazing it was to see Rome. Everywhere you turn there is history and beauty.. my goodness, it was incredible. Seriously, when I saw the Coleseum at a distance all lit up (it was the first time) I like freaked out and ran towards it haha. I could not shut up about how pretty and surreal it was. The next day we woke up early and went to the Vatican. =] You know Renaissance painting everywhere! =D Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel and Raphel's "School of Athens".. unreal. There was also this Dadism/Surrealism exposition at a museum in Rome that I went into a saw Marcel Duchamps famous toilet ("Fountain") haha which was prettty cool!
The next morning we left for Florence (730AM) so we arrive there around 9AM where we imediately settled in and set off for the Florence Cathedral. The church was so pretty! I would have never imagined it to be that pretty in real life! It was so colorful with marble and the designs were far more elaborate that it ever looked in pictures! The facade reminded us a lot of "Its a Small World" ride at Disneyland lol. Anyway, we walk to the very top of Brunelleshci's dome! AH! =] so cool and look out over Tuscany Florence (beautiful) Then we went off to the Galleria dell'Academia. . . do you know what is there? The giant, the perfect, the beautiful white marble sculpture of David.. now that was a dream. Seriously. I walked around the corner and there he was alluminated under this globed ceiling, it was so great! Then that night, since it was Halloween, we went to this club called "Space Electronica" and hahaha my goodness, this was that icing to our cake.. Space club was so legit.. they were playing awesome music, there were hundreds of people there dressed up for Halloween, there were like 3 levels and Meg and I met some hottie Australians.. lol it was just a lot of fun. We left the next morning, sadly, but very pleased with our trip.
I know that was kind of long, but I still didn't include all details. I do find it very important, however, to note some of the best things we found in Italy.
1) Best Lasagna
2) Best Tiramisu
3) Best Gelato times 5
4) Best Capuccinos and Lattes
5) Not best pizzza =( unfortunate
6) Best Club
7) Best leather gloves (which I bought in Florence.. so classy.)
8) Best water
hmm.. and I actually think there is more.. but this blog is already days long. Pictures will appear in a seperate blog! Yay!
I LOVE ITALY!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Des problèmes.
Hey!
So between yesterday and today, there have been a few obstacles, but things are coming together slowly lol.
It began with trying to find Meagan at the airport. I went to the airport at 2:00Pm, expecting to see her at 2:20 just after her flight came in, however, I didn't know which gate she was coming in from and so I ran around the airport for about an hour and a half trying to find her. I started to freak out because I didn't know if I would ever find her and I didn't know if she remembered to take my cell phone number with her so she could contact me, so I pretty much just prayed that somehow she would call me.. and thank God, she did =] After I found Meg, I learned that the airport had lost her baggage, and boy has that created a huge bump in our road =[ It is really frustrating because the airport told her that they would get the bags to her last night, but here we are the next day at noon and we still don't know where her bags are. Thank goodness that we actually didn't leave for Italy today because she would have not had ANYthing, one pair of everything she was wearing and that was it.
Other than the continuing problem with the baggage, we have had problems with our traveling plans as well. As hinted above, we were supposed to leave for Florence, italy today, but we waited till last minute to reserve a seat on the train and it was impossible to book due to the France holiday "Tous Saintes" right now.. ugh!! So we looked for trains on Sunday as well, but it still was impossible. Today we woke up really early and went to the train station to be able to ride up to Paris today and then maybe Monday leave from Paris to Italy, but that didn't work either, thanks to the holiday. The very very nice man at the train station, however was such a great help, I excercised my french ;) and he gave us all our travel options. We ended up booking a train to Florence Monday night, arriving there Tuesday morning, so this is very good!!! Now the only problem is that we are still trying to find a way to Paris (just so meg can see the city while she is here) but we cant do ANYTHING until her stupid luggage gets here! I am so iritated with the airport because she has called them like 5 times and they can't give her any information other than "its coming".... but when AIRfrance when!?! You are holding us up!
lol.. sorry I'm irritated. I hope nonr of you ever have to experience an airport losing your bags.
Well, wish us luck to our potential destinations! =] If we are stuck in Lyon til Monday, that is not bad because it means we save money and Meg gets to explore Lyon, HOWEVER, I want to see Paris and Italy!! lol
Until next time, Ciao...
Mallory
So between yesterday and today, there have been a few obstacles, but things are coming together slowly lol.
It began with trying to find Meagan at the airport. I went to the airport at 2:00Pm, expecting to see her at 2:20 just after her flight came in, however, I didn't know which gate she was coming in from and so I ran around the airport for about an hour and a half trying to find her. I started to freak out because I didn't know if I would ever find her and I didn't know if she remembered to take my cell phone number with her so she could contact me, so I pretty much just prayed that somehow she would call me.. and thank God, she did =] After I found Meg, I learned that the airport had lost her baggage, and boy has that created a huge bump in our road =[ It is really frustrating because the airport told her that they would get the bags to her last night, but here we are the next day at noon and we still don't know where her bags are. Thank goodness that we actually didn't leave for Italy today because she would have not had ANYthing, one pair of everything she was wearing and that was it.
Other than the continuing problem with the baggage, we have had problems with our traveling plans as well. As hinted above, we were supposed to leave for Florence, italy today, but we waited till last minute to reserve a seat on the train and it was impossible to book due to the France holiday "Tous Saintes" right now.. ugh!! So we looked for trains on Sunday as well, but it still was impossible. Today we woke up really early and went to the train station to be able to ride up to Paris today and then maybe Monday leave from Paris to Italy, but that didn't work either, thanks to the holiday. The very very nice man at the train station, however was such a great help, I excercised my french ;) and he gave us all our travel options. We ended up booking a train to Florence Monday night, arriving there Tuesday morning, so this is very good!!! Now the only problem is that we are still trying to find a way to Paris (just so meg can see the city while she is here) but we cant do ANYTHING until her stupid luggage gets here! I am so iritated with the airport because she has called them like 5 times and they can't give her any information other than "its coming".... but when AIRfrance when!?! You are holding us up!
lol.. sorry I'm irritated. I hope nonr of you ever have to experience an airport losing your bags.
Well, wish us luck to our potential destinations! =] If we are stuck in Lyon til Monday, that is not bad because it means we save money and Meg gets to explore Lyon, HOWEVER, I want to see Paris and Italy!! lol
Until next time, Ciao...
Mallory
Thursday, October 22, 2009
[Dommage.] mais une semaine en Italy.
I just realized that after next week, I am going to be completely broke.
hmm...
Despite that.. I shall enjoy every bit of my Italy trip with Meagan. =] This is a dream come true for me =] Pray for us that we will be safe and have the most successful trip!
Until November 2 =]
LOVE, MALLORY. (its in color hehehe)
hmm...
Despite that.. I shall enjoy every bit of my Italy trip with Meagan. =] This is a dream come true for me =] Pray for us that we will be safe and have the most successful trip!
Until November 2 =]
LOVE, MALLORY. (its in color hehehe)
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Vous voyez.. En Europe..
I think that one of my favorite things about being in France is that other AMAZING countries are right next door! =]
You see, in Europe, it is still expensive to travel, but extremely less expensive from the states and extremely quicker! I love it! =] So I am taking advantage of my wonderful stay in France and travel to the following places in the last two months I have here:
Italy (Florence and Rome): Next week.
Paris: Next Week, and hopefully again before Im outta here.
Chamonix/Mont Blanc/Geneva: Weekend of Nov 20. (tentative)
London/Oxford: Nov 26-30 =]
Amazing, right? I would love to go to Amsterdam, but that is just a bit more expensive than I was hoping for.. but its okay, because look at those other amazing places Im going!! Yippee!! =]
Stay tuned for pictures from the previously mentioned cities!
And I would like to welcome my lovely friend Meagan to France in less than 2 days! =D
You see, in Europe, it is still expensive to travel, but extremely less expensive from the states and extremely quicker! I love it! =] So I am taking advantage of my wonderful stay in France and travel to the following places in the last two months I have here:
Italy (Florence and Rome): Next week.
Paris: Next Week, and hopefully again before Im outta here.
Chamonix/Mont Blanc/Geneva: Weekend of Nov 20. (tentative)
London/Oxford: Nov 26-30 =]
Amazing, right? I would love to go to Amsterdam, but that is just a bit more expensive than I was hoping for.. but its okay, because look at those other amazing places Im going!! Yippee!! =]
Stay tuned for pictures from the previously mentioned cities!
And I would like to welcome my lovely friend Meagan to France in less than 2 days! =D
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Les Raclettes et les amis.
Hey everyone!
After 8 weeks or so of being in France, I have finally made some French friends!! woo! haha And thanks to my friend Sam! So Mathea, one of my new friends, met Sam in Berkeley when she was studying there this past year, but she lives in Lyon now and she contacted him when she heard that he was studying in Lyon. She invited me and Sam over for dinner and I met 4 other really nice girls also! It was so much fun and of course I had the benefit of practicing my french! Always a plus.
So Mathea made us something called "raclettes," which is like a French speciality or something and it goes a little something like this:
You melt a lot cheese and pour it on potatoes and meats (like salami, ham ect "charcuterie").
Amazing right?! haha It was seriously so tasty!
So anyway, I have been planning to go to London ever since I got here and these girls want to come with for the trip!! I am really excited cause they are really fun!
After 8 weeks or so of being in France, I have finally made some French friends!! woo! haha And thanks to my friend Sam! So Mathea, one of my new friends, met Sam in Berkeley when she was studying there this past year, but she lives in Lyon now and she contacted him when she heard that he was studying in Lyon. She invited me and Sam over for dinner and I met 4 other really nice girls also! It was so much fun and of course I had the benefit of practicing my french! Always a plus.
So Mathea made us something called "raclettes," which is like a French speciality or something and it goes a little something like this:
You melt a lot cheese and pour it on potatoes and meats (like salami, ham ect "charcuterie").
Amazing right?! haha It was seriously so tasty!
So anyway, I have been planning to go to London ever since I got here and these girls want to come with for the trip!! I am really excited cause they are really fun!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Un week-end à Lyon - l'art et amis.
Hey friends,
I stayed in Lyon this weekend and it was pretty exciting! I had the opportunity of doing a couple things that I haven't done yet so that is really good.
Katie's family (aunt, uncle and cousin) came to visit her this week, so after school on friday we had lunch with them and then took a walk up to the Fourviere to show them the gorgeous view of Lyon. If I haven't talked about the Fourviere before, it is a 19th century cathedral located up on the hill "fourviere," and you can pretty much spot it from any point in the city. Here is a picture of it off the internet.
I had never been inside the cathedral, but this time around I got the chance and it was great! It is so beautiful inside! There are these two gold and colored mosaics on each side of the walls inside and they were so angelical. The ceiling vaults were so elaborate; I was speeechless. However, when I see then sistine chapel next week in Rome, I am reeeeaaally going to be speechless. I have to prepare myself, I might have a heart attack. lol Here is a picture of the inside of the cathedral.
Saturday I hung out with my friend Sam most of the day. We went to the Musee des Beaux-Arts, which made me really really happy! I had been wanting to go every weekend since I have been here and I am so happy I finally got someone to go with me that enjoys art too! =] There is an awesome exposition there right now featuring major artists from the 20th century! Picasso, Matisse, Bacon, Dufy AKA: movements such as Cubism and Fauvism and other avant-garde and post-world war II depictions. The exposition is amazing! They have over 180 works or something like that! I saw this one painting by Maria Helent Viera da Silva, called "Le Desastre" that I fell in love with. I found this picture of it online, so its hard to see and hard to appreciate. It is a war painting. And the lines that she created are so powerful. From a distance (my friend sam pointed this out) it looks like a shattered glass, and he is right!! You can just feel the sharp lines jabbing you and almost hear the cries from the crowd. LOOK:
Anyway.. I loved it. I need to go back though because we didn't have enough time to really look at the entire exhibit, let alone the whole museum. We then met Katie's family again at a "match au foot" - soccer game - but Lyon lost, so that was a bummer. I saw Clint Eastwood though. Apparetly he is into French football.
Today, Sunday, I hung out with Sam again and we went his friend Mathea's house and watched the UCLA/CAL football game on the internet. It was an unfortunate game for UCLA, but Sam goes to CAL and Mathea once went to Berekly as well, so it was a good game for them.
So tomorrow begins another week of school, but I am really excited because this Friday Meagan is coming!! It is so nice to have someone from home visit! I wish my family could!
Friday, October 16, 2009
Classe au Musée Gallo-Romaines
Allô!
Thursday was my first day in Art History class here in Lyon. We all met at Place Bellecour and took the funiculaire up the hill to the Musee Gallo-Romain for a little tour and education. =]
In the B.C years and a bit after, the Romans took over this area in France and there are still ruins left in Lyon since then (so awesome right!!!!! eeh =]) This museum is dedicated to roman excavations found here in Lyon. There are columns, mosaics, sarcophogi, peices from the ampitheatres and collesium ect. Located next to the museum are two ampitheatres (one smaller than the other, called an "odean") Here are pictures of them:
This is a picture from the top of the theatre looking down. The flat wood platform is where they would perform plays and the broken columns behind used to extend all the way up with a backdrop, forming a wall, but over the thousands of years, they have been broken.
This is a side picture of the seats of the theatre.
Here is our class sitting on the steps of the theatre. Our professor is in the red coat. She is a pretty hip lady. lol. I like her.
We are so stinkin' lucky to be sitting on these steps. It is amazing to come to a country that has seen so much more history than ours in the states. I can't believe this has been here since 15 B.C. It is absolutely unreal. I love it! =]
Thursday was my first day in Art History class here in Lyon. We all met at Place Bellecour and took the funiculaire up the hill to the Musee Gallo-Romain for a little tour and education. =]
In the B.C years and a bit after, the Romans took over this area in France and there are still ruins left in Lyon since then (so awesome right!!!!! eeh =]) This museum is dedicated to roman excavations found here in Lyon. There are columns, mosaics, sarcophogi, peices from the ampitheatres and collesium ect. Located next to the museum are two ampitheatres (one smaller than the other, called an "odean") Here are pictures of them:
This is a picture from the top of the theatre looking down. The flat wood platform is where they would perform plays and the broken columns behind used to extend all the way up with a backdrop, forming a wall, but over the thousands of years, they have been broken.
This is a side picture of the seats of the theatre.
Here is our class sitting on the steps of the theatre. Our professor is in the red coat. She is a pretty hip lady. lol. I like her.
We are so stinkin' lucky to be sitting on these steps. It is amazing to come to a country that has seen so much more history than ours in the states. I can't believe this has been here since 15 B.C. It is absolutely unreal. I love it! =]
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Le Lac des Cygnes
Swan Lake ballet in France. =]
I bought tickets today. Katie, Veronica and I are going November 30. It is going to be amazing! I can't wait!
P.s-
Lyon is freezing right now. Winds at like 15 mph .. ice cold winds. I don't like it.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Cluses, France.
Bonjour a tous!
Sorry I havent written in a really long time. I get lazy with this thing. So this past weekend was really great and very eventful. Katie and I traveled to a small town called Cluses. It is on the border of Switzerland and France. Very pretty because it is in the mountains and the elevation was so high the the mountains cut through the clouds and it was beautiful! =] We had an interesting weekend but it was awesome so let me try to recap for you:
We left for Cluses on a train, not knowing where we were going to sleep. haha We like to take risks as such in France. We had written down addresses for some places just in case, so we pretty much trusted that we would find a place. Well, we did. As soon as we exited the train station there was a small hotel across the street and we stayed there. Lol. The place has placed such an awesome memory in our minds. I wish I could describe this place. So the owner, or at least I think he was the owner, was a little overweight, he wore tight pants, had the most sassy strut, had an eyebrow ring with pink neon balls on it and his name was David. Not David how we Americans pronounce it, but like the French... "Daaawwwwwveed." ;) haha this guy. Anywho, with David's strut was also techno music in the background as David showed us to our room, it was unforgettable.
The next day we didnt know what to do because Cluses is so dang small with nothing to do, so we took a random train to whatever city. This led us to Annemasse. Ehh... Annemasse was not impressive. We walked the city and ended up at H&M haha something we do in Lyon everyday. After Annemasse, our home train stopped in a place called La Roche sur Foro and we had to stay there for 2 hours. So to pass the time.. we walked around. But fortunately, this place was very cute!! The buildings were adorable, the view of the mountains was gorgeous, there was this church with cool looking stained glass windows ect.. so we enjoyed the time there. The ride on the train was so pleasant. Seeing the French border was just really pretty and serene. Very different from Lyon where it is very "city-like." Yea, Lyon still has its ancient ruins and has it's historic and quaint aspects, but it is still very urban compared to the countryside towns.
So that night was the concert for Coeur de Pirate - the whole reason we went to Cluses in the first place. We enjoyed a jar of Jalopenos before the concert for dinner ;) and then got a free ride to the concert by this really nice lady. The concert was absolutely amazing. Beatrice, the singer/pianist for the band is so talented and she is the cutest little thing ever! Katie and I reallllly enjoyed ourselves! =] We loved it! After the show, we met Beatrice and we talked to her. Apparently she is coming to SF in the spring, which is a huge deal because she is French/Canadian and never tours in the US, but this will be her first time there! So we are going to be friends with her and show her around lol. I know that the trip might have not sounded as interesting as I would have liked for it to sound, but lets just say that I left our details about the game perfect match, free rides, sugar daddies and underaged french boys. haha
Here are some pictures from the weekend.
Pretty church. As we walked by we could hear the organ inside. =]
Mountains in La Roche sur Foro
Before the concert with the jalopenos.
Beatrice busting out her talents.
Beatrice singing her cute little heart away.
This last picture is of all the cool things we got in Cluses. Like peanut butter!!!!! You dont understand how rare it is in France! It was a miracle that we found it! Jalopenos... a free Coeur de Pirate poster, her autograph on our tickets, free ice cream from David, tortilla chips and nasty guacomole haha. We loved it.
Sorry I havent written in a really long time. I get lazy with this thing. So this past weekend was really great and very eventful. Katie and I traveled to a small town called Cluses. It is on the border of Switzerland and France. Very pretty because it is in the mountains and the elevation was so high the the mountains cut through the clouds and it was beautiful! =] We had an interesting weekend but it was awesome so let me try to recap for you:
We left for Cluses on a train, not knowing where we were going to sleep. haha We like to take risks as such in France. We had written down addresses for some places just in case, so we pretty much trusted that we would find a place. Well, we did. As soon as we exited the train station there was a small hotel across the street and we stayed there. Lol. The place has placed such an awesome memory in our minds. I wish I could describe this place. So the owner, or at least I think he was the owner, was a little overweight, he wore tight pants, had the most sassy strut, had an eyebrow ring with pink neon balls on it and his name was David. Not David how we Americans pronounce it, but like the French... "Daaawwwwwveed." ;) haha this guy. Anywho, with David's strut was also techno music in the background as David showed us to our room, it was unforgettable.
The next day we didnt know what to do because Cluses is so dang small with nothing to do, so we took a random train to whatever city. This led us to Annemasse. Ehh... Annemasse was not impressive. We walked the city and ended up at H&M haha something we do in Lyon everyday. After Annemasse, our home train stopped in a place called La Roche sur Foro and we had to stay there for 2 hours. So to pass the time.. we walked around. But fortunately, this place was very cute!! The buildings were adorable, the view of the mountains was gorgeous, there was this church with cool looking stained glass windows ect.. so we enjoyed the time there. The ride on the train was so pleasant. Seeing the French border was just really pretty and serene. Very different from Lyon where it is very "city-like." Yea, Lyon still has its ancient ruins and has it's historic and quaint aspects, but it is still very urban compared to the countryside towns.
So that night was the concert for Coeur de Pirate - the whole reason we went to Cluses in the first place. We enjoyed a jar of Jalopenos before the concert for dinner ;) and then got a free ride to the concert by this really nice lady. The concert was absolutely amazing. Beatrice, the singer/pianist for the band is so talented and she is the cutest little thing ever! Katie and I reallllly enjoyed ourselves! =] We loved it! After the show, we met Beatrice and we talked to her. Apparently she is coming to SF in the spring, which is a huge deal because she is French/Canadian and never tours in the US, but this will be her first time there! So we are going to be friends with her and show her around lol. I know that the trip might have not sounded as interesting as I would have liked for it to sound, but lets just say that I left our details about the game perfect match, free rides, sugar daddies and underaged french boys. haha
Here are some pictures from the weekend.
Pretty church. As we walked by we could hear the organ inside. =] Mountains in La Roche sur Foro Before the concert with the jalopenos. Beatrice busting out her talents. Beatrice singing her cute little heart away.This last picture is of all the cool things we got in Cluses. Like peanut butter!!!!! You dont understand how rare it is in France! It was a miracle that we found it! Jalopenos... a free Coeur de Pirate poster, her autograph on our tickets, free ice cream from David, tortilla chips and nasty guacomole haha. We loved it.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Un cri pour l'aide
Salut ma famille et mes amis.
Here we are again, becoming sad because I still suck at French. I don't know, I guess because I have already been here for 6 weeks and I only have about 10 more weeks to go, my lack of progress in the language is worrying me. I just wish that it wasn't so hard for me. Let me tell you, my kids will be put through a second language at a very young age. Actually, I hope that I will be able to speak french and english to my kids so they will learn both and maybe learn a third language early. It is probably one of the most frustrating things in my life to not be able to communicate with someone because of a language barrier. I feel like after a year and a half of learning french I should be awesome, but I am not even close. I often find myself saying english phrases incorrectly in my mind with a horrible accent to try to understand the trouble that I put the French people through when I try to speak french to them. =[
p.s. Katie is back from Munich!! =] yay! Let the fun begin again! haha
p.s.s. Her trip was absolutely crazy! Poor girl had to sleep on a horse race track with an airplane blanket in 30 degree weather! =[
p.s.s.s. hahaha since I am writing all these "p.s's" it is reminding me of a movie I saw the other day called "Mary and Max." If it is playing in the U.S I suggest you see it!! It is really good!
D'accord.. Bonne journee!
-Mallory
Here we are again, becoming sad because I still suck at French. I don't know, I guess because I have already been here for 6 weeks and I only have about 10 more weeks to go, my lack of progress in the language is worrying me. I just wish that it wasn't so hard for me. Let me tell you, my kids will be put through a second language at a very young age. Actually, I hope that I will be able to speak french and english to my kids so they will learn both and maybe learn a third language early. It is probably one of the most frustrating things in my life to not be able to communicate with someone because of a language barrier. I feel like after a year and a half of learning french I should be awesome, but I am not even close. I often find myself saying english phrases incorrectly in my mind with a horrible accent to try to understand the trouble that I put the French people through when I try to speak french to them. =[
p.s. Katie is back from Munich!! =] yay! Let the fun begin again! haha
p.s.s. Her trip was absolutely crazy! Poor girl had to sleep on a horse race track with an airplane blanket in 30 degree weather! =[
p.s.s.s. hahaha since I am writing all these "p.s's" it is reminding me of a movie I saw the other day called "Mary and Max." If it is playing in the U.S I suggest you see it!! It is really good!
D'accord.. Bonne journee!
-Mallory
Monday, October 5, 2009
4 Octobre, 2009
Salut tout la mode...
I had my worst day in Lyon thus far. Yesterday was a really sad and depressing day. It all started in the morning when I went to wash my bedsheets. We arent supposed to use the dryer here because it doesnt take out moisture or something like that so we hang dry everything. Well when the sheets were done in the washing machine, I went to grab a rack for drying and it was fine until like 20 seconds later. I heard a crash and saw that the ironing board, which was behind the rack, fell and hit the washing machine door and broke the door right off the hinge. My host family was out of town for the day and so I had to wait until night until I could tell my host-mom what had really happened. So while this was on my mind all day, I just hung out in Lyon, which wasn't very fun. My friends, well Katie, went out of town this weekend to Munich for Oktoberfest, so I was all alone.
I really hope that today goes better. I have just a few hours until class and once class starts, the day goes by quickly...
P.S- I miss my sister a lot.. I haven't even talked to here, like on the phone, since I left in August. Its really sad.
-Mallory
I had my worst day in Lyon thus far. Yesterday was a really sad and depressing day. It all started in the morning when I went to wash my bedsheets. We arent supposed to use the dryer here because it doesnt take out moisture or something like that so we hang dry everything. Well when the sheets were done in the washing machine, I went to grab a rack for drying and it was fine until like 20 seconds later. I heard a crash and saw that the ironing board, which was behind the rack, fell and hit the washing machine door and broke the door right off the hinge. My host family was out of town for the day and so I had to wait until night until I could tell my host-mom what had really happened. So while this was on my mind all day, I just hung out in Lyon, which wasn't very fun. My friends, well Katie, went out of town this weekend to Munich for Oktoberfest, so I was all alone.
I really hope that today goes better. I have just a few hours until class and once class starts, the day goes by quickly...
P.S- I miss my sister a lot.. I haven't even talked to here, like on the phone, since I left in August. Its really sad.
-Mallory
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Trop "faire du shopping" aujourd'hui.
Bonjour friends and family!
So I know I don't write as often now, but I think that it is because I don't do anything that new and exciting everyday so it isn't worth documenting, you know? However, today was an extreme shopping day. I had planned to not spend over 10 Euros...it turned into a mess.. But very necessary!
First, today I was supposed to buy a ticket to London because Drea and I were going to leave for London tomorrow after school and return Monday night.. It turns out that the awesome price of just 74 euros is only if you book the seat like two weeks in advance =[ so the day before was going to be 133 euros... NO MERCI =] Anyway, we found a roundtrip ticket in november to London for just 55 euros.. AMAZING.. GENIAL!!! So I think we were going to go then..
So in saddness of not being able to go to London =`( I placed this energy into shopping.. Oh la la. But like I said, it was very necessary and I got some awesome practical wear for Lyon winters and fancy days! =] I bought the jacket. "THE" jacket.. the leather jacket that I said I would buy! I don't know what Lyon is trying to do to me, but all these super cute stores have been having like 40-50% off everything! ahh.. So I found an awesome leather jacket (a bit fake, but I wasnt picky) for just 29 euro!! YAY!!! The best price ever! All the others I have found have been anywhere from 90-200 euros.. Also, I bought 3 pairs of the cutest shoes (boots) ever and two sweaters, a hat, glasses and some cool rings. I know it sounds like a lot.. And it is.. lol. BUT it was all for a good price considering the amount I bought. AND its very very important that I look stylish and french in this tres chic city! ;)
All my friends are going to Munich for Oktober fest this weekend =[ so Im sad, but I really dont care about beer and festivals as such so I wasn't okay with paying the money for the trip. I hope they all have the time of there lives though! I will find something to do here in Lyon! =]
OH! And how could I forget!!! So we all have been dying because it has been over a month since we have had mexican food. We went on an extreme search for Mexican food in Lyon, but it was No WHERE to be found. However, we did find a place called "El Sombrero." It was such a special evening indeed. The food was not like authentic California taco truck haha but considering it was France and it had been so long since my last burrito, it was awesome!!
LOOK! My first chip in such a long time! It was heavenly!
The burrito..
It was so cute.. the waitress gave us sombreros to feel "at home" I suppose.
Too much fun.
Until next time,
Mallory
So I know I don't write as often now, but I think that it is because I don't do anything that new and exciting everyday so it isn't worth documenting, you know? However, today was an extreme shopping day. I had planned to not spend over 10 Euros...it turned into a mess.. But very necessary!
First, today I was supposed to buy a ticket to London because Drea and I were going to leave for London tomorrow after school and return Monday night.. It turns out that the awesome price of just 74 euros is only if you book the seat like two weeks in advance =[ so the day before was going to be 133 euros... NO MERCI =] Anyway, we found a roundtrip ticket in november to London for just 55 euros.. AMAZING.. GENIAL!!! So I think we were going to go then..
So in saddness of not being able to go to London =`( I placed this energy into shopping.. Oh la la. But like I said, it was very necessary and I got some awesome practical wear for Lyon winters and fancy days! =] I bought the jacket. "THE" jacket.. the leather jacket that I said I would buy! I don't know what Lyon is trying to do to me, but all these super cute stores have been having like 40-50% off everything! ahh.. So I found an awesome leather jacket (a bit fake, but I wasnt picky) for just 29 euro!! YAY!!! The best price ever! All the others I have found have been anywhere from 90-200 euros.. Also, I bought 3 pairs of the cutest shoes (boots) ever and two sweaters, a hat, glasses and some cool rings. I know it sounds like a lot.. And it is.. lol. BUT it was all for a good price considering the amount I bought. AND its very very important that I look stylish and french in this tres chic city! ;)
All my friends are going to Munich for Oktober fest this weekend =[ so Im sad, but I really dont care about beer and festivals as such so I wasn't okay with paying the money for the trip. I hope they all have the time of there lives though! I will find something to do here in Lyon! =]
OH! And how could I forget!!! So we all have been dying because it has been over a month since we have had mexican food. We went on an extreme search for Mexican food in Lyon, but it was No WHERE to be found. However, we did find a place called "El Sombrero." It was such a special evening indeed. The food was not like authentic California taco truck haha but considering it was France and it had been so long since my last burrito, it was awesome!!
LOOK! My first chip in such a long time! It was heavenly!
The burrito..
It was so cute.. the waitress gave us sombreros to feel "at home" I suppose.
Too much fun.
Until next time,
Mallory
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Vienne, France.
Yesterday Katie, Drea and I took a quick day trip to a small town called "Vienne." It is an ancient Roman town about 40 minutes (on train) outside of Lyon. It was really cute! Quaint and historic; I loved it.
This is me in front of le temple romain d'auguste et livie:
It was literally in the middle of a bunch of stores and restaurants. I guess they just built around it.
This little kid climbed in and was walking around freely enjoying himself.. He got up on the temple platform and I was SO stinking mad because I wanted to do that! But there was an Access Forbidden sign so I was too scared... but, dont worry.. I climbed in ;)
There were two other sites, some ruins and an old Roman theatre, where they still hold concerts!! Here is a picture of Katie, Drea and I at the ruins.
I absolutely love that I can just train it over to an awesome acient city like this. Unbelieveable. I am so blessed.
This is me in front of le temple romain d'auguste et livie:
It was literally in the middle of a bunch of stores and restaurants. I guess they just built around it.
This little kid climbed in and was walking around freely enjoying himself.. He got up on the temple platform and I was SO stinking mad because I wanted to do that! But there was an Access Forbidden sign so I was too scared... but, dont worry.. I climbed in ;)
There were two other sites, some ruins and an old Roman theatre, where they still hold concerts!! Here is a picture of Katie, Drea and I at the ruins.
I absolutely love that I can just train it over to an awesome acient city like this. Unbelieveable. I am so blessed.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Franglais.
I love when I see French translations into English. haha.
So I often go to this store called "Monoprix." I think it is a semi-equivalent to Target, but obviously not as awesome as Target. The floorplan of the store is actually very bizzare. The bottom floor is a grocery store, the next floor is a mix of lingerie, woman's clothes and make-up, the floor above that is a cafe and then the last floor at the top is pharmacie items, a bookstore, men's clothes and anything else that you can think of. Haha. I love it because you first walk into the woman's level but as you ascend, you get a mixed smell of groceries and woman's perfume.
Anyway, the highlight of my trip to monoprix the other day was finding a section of shirts, totes and misc. items with English phrases on them. Read these and if you have an opinion on what they mean, let me know, because I am quite confused:
1) Let it Dream
2) Peace Process Needs You
3) Im a Love Result (haha, really?)
4) Trust in Peace
5) Wake up, the World is Burning. (Raising awarness for global warning? I am not sure. lol.)
S0, let us make it clear that I am not making fun because God knows that I suck at French and I probably say things that the French think "Woa, what the heck is this girl saying!?" haha but I thought that it would be fun to share these phrases with all those English speakers who read my blogs.
I hope you enjoyed reading. ;)
So I often go to this store called "Monoprix." I think it is a semi-equivalent to Target, but obviously not as awesome as Target. The floorplan of the store is actually very bizzare. The bottom floor is a grocery store, the next floor is a mix of lingerie, woman's clothes and make-up, the floor above that is a cafe and then the last floor at the top is pharmacie items, a bookstore, men's clothes and anything else that you can think of. Haha. I love it because you first walk into the woman's level but as you ascend, you get a mixed smell of groceries and woman's perfume.
Anyway, the highlight of my trip to monoprix the other day was finding a section of shirts, totes and misc. items with English phrases on them. Read these and if you have an opinion on what they mean, let me know, because I am quite confused:
1) Let it Dream
2) Peace Process Needs You
3) Im a Love Result (haha, really?)
4) Trust in Peace
5) Wake up, the World is Burning. (Raising awarness for global warning? I am not sure. lol.)
S0, let us make it clear that I am not making fun because God knows that I suck at French and I probably say things that the French think "Woa, what the heck is this girl saying!?" haha but I thought that it would be fun to share these phrases with all those English speakers who read my blogs.
I hope you enjoyed reading. ;)
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Leather jackets? Le dernier cri?
Hello friends,
So I have not confirmed to myself just yet that I am sick, but I have had a terrible stomach ache all day today and I pray that I do not get sick when I am in a different country.. ugghh.. Everyone keeps talking about la grippe (the flu) and I don't want it!
Also, can everyone keep their eyes open for a super trendy black leather jacket that is not too expensive? I'm on the lookout and I promise you that I will be buying one when I am here, but all the ones I have seen are like 109-140 euros and Ms. Mallory does not have that kind of money to spend on a jacket. But I tell you... black leather jackets are le dernier cri. ;)
Okay thanks!!
Loves,
Mallory
So I have not confirmed to myself just yet that I am sick, but I have had a terrible stomach ache all day today and I pray that I do not get sick when I am in a different country.. ugghh.. Everyone keeps talking about la grippe (the flu) and I don't want it!
Also, can everyone keep their eyes open for a super trendy black leather jacket that is not too expensive? I'm on the lookout and I promise you that I will be buying one when I am here, but all the ones I have seen are like 109-140 euros and Ms. Mallory does not have that kind of money to spend on a jacket. But I tell you... black leather jackets are le dernier cri. ;)
Okay thanks!!
Loves,
Mallory
Thursday, September 17, 2009
jeudi le 17 septembre
Hey!
I know that it has been a few days since I have written a post, so sorry about that. This week just has not been the greatest. I have pretty much been late to class everyday, which is obviously not good and on top of that everyday has been pretty much a fail at school.
Yesterday was the worst day ever. I dont want to give you a play by play, but I will tell you a few of the tragedies. I dropped my iPhone from two flights of stairs, which is now permanently broken. I went to a soccer game for Lyon which was so awesome, but we were an hour late. At least we won. And the best part, I lost my wallet. When I got home I had an email from one of the ladies that I met on Sunday at the bike marathon and she had said that this guy called her telling her that he found my wallet. I had left her phone number in my wallet so when the guy found it he searched it and called her number. Seriously, thank God for that one, because what a blessing to have my wallet found by an honest person. Today I called the guy and picked it up. Everything was in it, and I know my mom is freaking out as she is reading this right now, but mom, I promise that everything is good! haha I went to the guys apartment with one of my friends (a guy) and the man who found my wallet was very nice. lol Dont worry.
Now, everything seems to be back in order. Tomorrow is vendredi =] yay (Friday) and hopefully it will be great!
A plus tard.
bonne journee.
I know that it has been a few days since I have written a post, so sorry about that. This week just has not been the greatest. I have pretty much been late to class everyday, which is obviously not good and on top of that everyday has been pretty much a fail at school.
Yesterday was the worst day ever. I dont want to give you a play by play, but I will tell you a few of the tragedies. I dropped my iPhone from two flights of stairs, which is now permanently broken. I went to a soccer game for Lyon which was so awesome, but we were an hour late. At least we won. And the best part, I lost my wallet. When I got home I had an email from one of the ladies that I met on Sunday at the bike marathon and she had said that this guy called her telling her that he found my wallet. I had left her phone number in my wallet so when the guy found it he searched it and called her number. Seriously, thank God for that one, because what a blessing to have my wallet found by an honest person. Today I called the guy and picked it up. Everything was in it, and I know my mom is freaking out as she is reading this right now, but mom, I promise that everything is good! haha I went to the guys apartment with one of my friends (a guy) and the man who found my wallet was very nice. lol Dont worry.
Now, everything seems to be back in order. Tomorrow is vendredi =] yay (Friday) and hopefully it will be great!
A plus tard.
bonne journee.
Monday, September 14, 2009
VMA Awards 2009
So, being in France, I haven't seen the VMA awards, but I have read everyone's facebook status's about Kanye West stealing Taylor Swift's limelight. I agree that Kanye is a jerk and that he seriously think's that he is God's gift. He has done so many stupid things on television in these past years which is really unfortunate because he does create some good music.
But aside from his jerkiness. I would like to argue with Kanye and tell him that Beyonce's "Single Ladies" song is THE NUMBER ONE MOST ANNOYING SONG I HAVE EVER HEARD.
I cannot stand that song. And I am so happy that she didn't win.
wow.
HA.
But aside from his jerkiness. I would like to argue with Kanye and tell him that Beyonce's "Single Ladies" song is THE NUMBER ONE MOST ANNOYING SONG I HAVE EVER HEARD.
I cannot stand that song. And I am so happy that she didn't win.
wow.
HA.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Beaucoup de choses à partager.
Bonjour mes amis!
So I have quite a bit to share with you because the last few days were filled with great adventures!! I have a few pictures so with the help of these, hopefully I can keep this post as short and to the point as possible (No one wants to read a novel on these things).
Alors.
Two nights ago (Friday 11 September):
I already shared with you this day, it was the day I bought that awesome outfit with the torn pants, but this is a photo from that night. Nothing too exciting other than I like it because it is a cute picture of me and Katie. We are on the bus and really excited about it!
Last night. (Saturday 12 September)
I went to this concert in a park, which was free, and it was so much fun!
This band was awesome! They had so much energy and they sang in English, which was a plus! They were a good band to dance to! =] It was super funny because their lyrics were RIDICULOUS and I doubt that over half of the people at the concert didn't even know what they were saying because most everyone doesn't speak English here. haha good times.
This band, Madame Olga, was insane. haha French rock is classic. This guy's name is Sof. I dug him. lol Check them out on myspace to see what I am talking about. They had some crazy cool sound effects with their performance which made ir pretty epic.
Today, my friend Mike and I volunteered to help with the Lyon Bicycle Marathon. We got up extremely early and helped set up a food pit stop for all the contestants. We were there from about 7AM-3PM helping passing out food and drinks. I had a really good time. It was a great opporunity to network, meet some really great people from Lyon and of course practice my french!! =]
Here are some of the bikers.
This is Soginal (?) I can't spell her name.. But we became good friends throughout the day. She was one funny lady. =] I like her. "Voulez-vous du chocolat fondu?!" "Je vais faire un petit sandwich du chocolat!!" Haha There were chocolate bars for the particapants, but the sun melted them, so she was yelling out to everyone if they wanted "Chocolate Fondu." haha
After the marathon, a few of our new friends (Soginal, Pierre and Louisette) took Mike and me to look around the Hotel de Ville area. We went to this flee market where I bought 4 Disney movies in french, Harry Potter 1, 4 and 5 in french and a Babar book in french of course ALL for only 7.50 Euro. Such an awesome deal/day! Then they took us to probably one of the coolest cafe's that I have been to. The interior was just really chic and the ambiance was way chill. I liked it a lot.
Well that was pretty much the end of my fantastic day.. I mean, there were other really exciting things, but too small to add to the blog. I hope that you all had a fantastic day today as well! And until my next post,
Bonne Journée! (which I learned the true significance today!! woop woop!)
autographed,
-Mallory Venema
So I have quite a bit to share with you because the last few days were filled with great adventures!! I have a few pictures so with the help of these, hopefully I can keep this post as short and to the point as possible (No one wants to read a novel on these things).
Alors.
Two nights ago (Friday 11 September):
I already shared with you this day, it was the day I bought that awesome outfit with the torn pants, but this is a photo from that night. Nothing too exciting other than I like it because it is a cute picture of me and Katie. We are on the bus and really excited about it!
Last night. (Saturday 12 September)
I went to this concert in a park, which was free, and it was so much fun!
This band was awesome! They had so much energy and they sang in English, which was a plus! They were a good band to dance to! =] It was super funny because their lyrics were RIDICULOUS and I doubt that over half of the people at the concert didn't even know what they were saying because most everyone doesn't speak English here. haha good times.
This band, Madame Olga, was insane. haha French rock is classic. This guy's name is Sof. I dug him. lol Check them out on myspace to see what I am talking about. They had some crazy cool sound effects with their performance which made ir pretty epic.
Today, my friend Mike and I volunteered to help with the Lyon Bicycle Marathon. We got up extremely early and helped set up a food pit stop for all the contestants. We were there from about 7AM-3PM helping passing out food and drinks. I had a really good time. It was a great opporunity to network, meet some really great people from Lyon and of course practice my french!! =]
Here are some of the bikers.
This is Soginal (?) I can't spell her name.. But we became good friends throughout the day. She was one funny lady. =] I like her. "Voulez-vous du chocolat fondu?!" "Je vais faire un petit sandwich du chocolat!!" Haha There were chocolate bars for the particapants, but the sun melted them, so she was yelling out to everyone if they wanted "Chocolate Fondu." haha
After the marathon, a few of our new friends (Soginal, Pierre and Louisette) took Mike and me to look around the Hotel de Ville area. We went to this flee market where I bought 4 Disney movies in french, Harry Potter 1, 4 and 5 in french and a Babar book in french of course ALL for only 7.50 Euro. Such an awesome deal/day! Then they took us to probably one of the coolest cafe's that I have been to. The interior was just really chic and the ambiance was way chill. I liked it a lot.
Well that was pretty much the end of my fantastic day.. I mean, there were other really exciting things, but too small to add to the blog. I hope that you all had a fantastic day today as well! And until my next post,
Bonne Journée! (which I learned the true significance today!! woop woop!)
autographed,
-Mallory Venema
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Comme une mère française
So my host mom, Zoe, Maria and Odille all went out of town this weekend (Not all together, but separate plans.). I am home alone, and it is not so bad. Today, I have been very productive and not even half of the day is out yet. I am calling myself today a "French housemom." =]
So my friend Katie stayed the night last night and when we woke up, I made breakfast for the two of us! I don't know if I have told you some of my favorite things about France yet, but I absolutely love that we sit at the table every time we eat and I also love that water is served in bottles. Anyway, of course, when I made breakfast, we sat at the table with our toast, jelly and coffee. It was the cutest thing and I loved it. After we ate breakfast, I cleaned my room to look pristine and then I have been doing laundry all day. I just got back from the grocery store, which let me tell you, I handled like a french pro! =] When the lady told me the total, "Dix-sept euros dix-huit," I was like "oui, voila. Vignt euros dix-huit. Merci! Bonne journée" So great! =] Now I am eating a delicious salad for lunch at the table with my carafe of water. I wanted to travel into town today to find a nice flee market or farmers market, but I didn't get the chance to.
Yesterday, I bought the greatest outfit at H&M. I don't have a picture to put up of the outfit yet, but just imagine this, black spandex that have horizontal tears running up the leg. YES! haha If any of you watched this last season of SYTYCD, you know what I am talking about when I say that they are like the hot pink pants that Melissa wore for Sonya's contemporary dance. LOVE IT. If I get a picture soon, its going up on this same post, so look out!! =]
I hope you all have a wonderful day today!!
Passez un bon week-end alll of you! =]
-Mallory
So my friend Katie stayed the night last night and when we woke up, I made breakfast for the two of us! I don't know if I have told you some of my favorite things about France yet, but I absolutely love that we sit at the table every time we eat and I also love that water is served in bottles. Anyway, of course, when I made breakfast, we sat at the table with our toast, jelly and coffee. It was the cutest thing and I loved it. After we ate breakfast, I cleaned my room to look pristine and then I have been doing laundry all day. I just got back from the grocery store, which let me tell you, I handled like a french pro! =] When the lady told me the total, "Dix-sept euros dix-huit," I was like "oui, voila. Vignt euros dix-huit. Merci! Bonne journée" So great! =] Now I am eating a delicious salad for lunch at the table with my carafe of water. I wanted to travel into town today to find a nice flee market or farmers market, but I didn't get the chance to.
Yesterday, I bought the greatest outfit at H&M. I don't have a picture to put up of the outfit yet, but just imagine this, black spandex that have horizontal tears running up the leg. YES! haha If any of you watched this last season of SYTYCD, you know what I am talking about when I say that they are like the hot pink pants that Melissa wore for Sonya's contemporary dance. LOVE IT. If I get a picture soon, its going up on this same post, so look out!! =]
I hope you all have a wonderful day today!!
Passez un bon week-end alll of you! =]
-Mallory
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Tôt le matin blog
Bonjour! Bon matin!
So, this is an early morning blog. It cannot be long, because really, I need to get ready for school, but what I have to say deserved it's own post.
So recently I was put into a situation that is a little bit out of my control.
A: Because only God is in control and who am I to think I can control anything?
and
B. There is no B.
Haha, anyway. I don't want to go too much in detail, or in detail at all about this, but I will say in short that I feel like I'm in high school right now. So there is this guy that I think is cute and I don't know him that well yet, but from what I do know about him, he is a really good guy. He actually does not know that I feel about him in this way, because to be honest, we haven't really known each other for that long. But I'm a little worried because I think that one of my friends might like him too. (So high school, right?) haha
So that is short. I would like to tell more, but I have to get ready for school and also, I don't think it is smart to post this all over my blog. But I did want all my "followers" to know how I am doing in my "love life" (haha) since I am in France, yanno. ;)
I would like to ask for prayer for this situation, please, so I do not handle it in the wrong way and also that God's will will be done. If you have advice, please comment.
Thank you for you time and cares. =]
So, this is an early morning blog. It cannot be long, because really, I need to get ready for school, but what I have to say deserved it's own post.
So recently I was put into a situation that is a little bit out of my control.
A: Because only God is in control and who am I to think I can control anything?
and
B. There is no B.
Haha, anyway. I don't want to go too much in detail, or in detail at all about this, but I will say in short that I feel like I'm in high school right now. So there is this guy that I think is cute and I don't know him that well yet, but from what I do know about him, he is a really good guy. He actually does not know that I feel about him in this way, because to be honest, we haven't really known each other for that long. But I'm a little worried because I think that one of my friends might like him too. (So high school, right?) haha
So that is short. I would like to tell more, but I have to get ready for school and also, I don't think it is smart to post this all over my blog. But I did want all my "followers" to know how I am doing in my "love life" (haha) since I am in France, yanno. ;)
I would like to ask for prayer for this situation, please, so I do not handle it in the wrong way and also that God's will will be done. If you have advice, please comment.
Thank you for you time and cares. =]
avec l'amour,
Mallory
Mallory
Conjugasion
I am assuming that the majority of you know what it means to "conjugate" verbs. For those who do not, when learning a language the meat of the class is learning verbs and how to use them in different tenses (ie: present tense, past tense, future tense, imperative etc...). Well right now in class we are reviewing past tense congugations, which should be simple because it is review, but now that I am progressing further into the language, the verbs are getting more difficult to conjugate because there are more verbs to learn and a lot of them are what we call "irregular". I went to a bookstore today to search for a good grammar and conjugation book, but I didn't want to spend any money, so I didn't buy one. Plus it is hard to find a book for English students learning French because of course, we are in France, so all the books are for French students to learn other languages. Thank goodness I waited though, because when I got home, I talked to Maria (the Brazilian student) about finding a conjugation book and she told me that she had one here that she didn't need to use anymore so she let me borrow it. So sweet, right?! =] So yay for smart decisions on not spending money!
Speaking of not spending money. I said that I would update you a few days ago on how well I would budget myself this week.. and I am proud to tell you that I did not spend over 4 euros each day this week!!! Maybe even less!! This is great news! Better than the first week here when I was spending 40 here 50 there. I am going to try to keep spending less than 4 each day.. but I know that tomorrow in Karaoke night so maybe I will spend a little more, but lets hope not.
I'm sorry that I do not have too many exciting things to share with you today. I didn't do much, but it was a pretty productive day as far as homework goes. Perhaps tomorrow will come pictures and karaoke stories! =]
until then, have a great day!
-Mallory
Speaking of not spending money. I said that I would update you a few days ago on how well I would budget myself this week.. and I am proud to tell you that I did not spend over 4 euros each day this week!!! Maybe even less!! This is great news! Better than the first week here when I was spending 40 here 50 there. I am going to try to keep spending less than 4 each day.. but I know that tomorrow in Karaoke night so maybe I will spend a little more, but lets hope not.
I'm sorry that I do not have too many exciting things to share with you today. I didn't do much, but it was a pretty productive day as far as homework goes. Perhaps tomorrow will come pictures and karaoke stories! =]
until then, have a great day!
-Mallory
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Deuxieme blog pour le jour
Sorry, I know that I already posted today, but as you all know today's date is 09/09/09 and this deserves some celebration.
Now, on 9/9/99 (10 years ago), Britney Spears had her first live performance on the MTV Video Music Awards. Britney has a special place in my heart, ESPECIALLY Brit from the 90's, so I wanted to post the performance to celebrate her past 10 years of fame! GO BRITNEY! =]
Now, on 9/9/99 (10 years ago), Britney Spears had her first live performance on the MTV Video Music Awards. Britney has a special place in my heart, ESPECIALLY Brit from the 90's, so I wanted to post the performance to celebrate her past 10 years of fame! GO BRITNEY! =]
Qu'est-ce que vous pensez?
So, what do you think?
Should I cut bangs or leave them to grow?
Please give your opinion. I will be looking for comments. Thanks.
Now that that business is taken care of.
BONJOUR! =]
Things went better today than I thought. I was scared to have the "future talk" with the officials, but it went well. The only future we talked about was the ideas that we have for our research project. I told Chris, the "official" lol, that I was interested in researching the history of the architecture in Lyon, and from that he told me some other good ideas that would direct my research into something more fun and interesting. He told me that Lyon started a movement called "mettre en valeur" (I believe) and it was to perserve the historical architecture and other sites here in Lyon. Apparently people invested money into this project that pursued renovation to the historical city. I don't know much about it yet, of course, but I think that this would be something interesting to look into. I find it great that Lyon recognizes the importance of the art in the city and wants to keep preserve it as it is the story of their city. I also find that beauty is a lot more important here than in the United States. And I don't mean physical beauty, I am talking about the beauty in art and the enviornment. So, we will see how that goes. The only difficult part is going to be doing the research IN FRENCH and writing the paper IN FRENCH. eek.
One last thing... I swore off of Nutella. haha Quick huh? I threw up last night and I think it is because I ate like half a jar of that stuff. ICK!
Okay.. well have a beautiful day! And don't forget to advise me on cutting my bangs or not!
Thanks! Ciao!
Mallory
Should I cut bangs or leave them to grow?
Please give your opinion. I will be looking for comments. Thanks.
Now that that business is taken care of.
BONJOUR! =]
Things went better today than I thought. I was scared to have the "future talk" with the officials, but it went well. The only future we talked about was the ideas that we have for our research project. I told Chris, the "official" lol, that I was interested in researching the history of the architecture in Lyon, and from that he told me some other good ideas that would direct my research into something more fun and interesting. He told me that Lyon started a movement called "mettre en valeur" (I believe) and it was to perserve the historical architecture and other sites here in Lyon. Apparently people invested money into this project that pursued renovation to the historical city. I don't know much about it yet, of course, but I think that this would be something interesting to look into. I find it great that Lyon recognizes the importance of the art in the city and wants to keep preserve it as it is the story of their city. I also find that beauty is a lot more important here than in the United States. And I don't mean physical beauty, I am talking about the beauty in art and the enviornment. So, we will see how that goes. The only difficult part is going to be doing the research IN FRENCH and writing the paper IN FRENCH. eek.
One last thing... I swore off of Nutella. haha Quick huh? I threw up last night and I think it is because I ate like half a jar of that stuff. ICK!
Okay.. well have a beautiful day! And don't forget to advise me on cutting my bangs or not!
Thanks! Ciao!
Mallory
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Nutella
Bonjour!
My obsession at the moment: Nutella.
Most of your probably know what Nutella is, but for those who do not, it is a chocolate/hazelnut spread that is very popular in France. Often times people put it on bread or crepes, but I just like to spoon it! Haha Below is a picture of my friends (Katie and Geo) and me with Nutella mustaches. ;)
This is how much we love it. I think it is best seen on my white face.
Today our class had a meeting with our program advisors/directors and they told us that beginging tomorrow, we are going to have to discuss our future plans in life and ideas for our research project. Now anyone who knows me knows that "future plans" does not settle well in my stomache.. ugh.. I hate talking "future." For the research project, I am a bit nervous, but I think that it is pretty open to any ideas so naturally I am going to go towards art in Lyon, right? So, I have mentioned a bit about the beautiful buildings in Lyon and I think I want to research the evolution/adaption of style for the different monumental buildings in Lyon. This city has so much history to unveil and I think it might be fun to research it, of course, through the art! =] How ironic that I am an Art History major.
One other thing. I am not sure if I mentioned it before, but there is another female student that lives here. She was in Spain for the last week and a half, so I had not met her yet, but tonight she came home. Her name is Maria. She is very nice. She speaks better French than I do, and she doesn't speak any English at all. I think that this is going to be difficult for me to communicate with her, but I pray pray pray that it WONT be lol and that hopefully I can use this opportunity to speak more French more frequently. (Because God knows that I speak English to my friends in the program... not good, I know, not good.)
Okay, well I have homework and sleep to catch up on. Have a good night! And watch out for that Nutella!!
A demain,
Mallory
My obsession at the moment: Nutella.
Most of your probably know what Nutella is, but for those who do not, it is a chocolate/hazelnut spread that is very popular in France. Often times people put it on bread or crepes, but I just like to spoon it! Haha Below is a picture of my friends (Katie and Geo) and me with Nutella mustaches. ;)
This is how much we love it. I think it is best seen on my white face.
Today our class had a meeting with our program advisors/directors and they told us that beginging tomorrow, we are going to have to discuss our future plans in life and ideas for our research project. Now anyone who knows me knows that "future plans" does not settle well in my stomache.. ugh.. I hate talking "future." For the research project, I am a bit nervous, but I think that it is pretty open to any ideas so naturally I am going to go towards art in Lyon, right? So, I have mentioned a bit about the beautiful buildings in Lyon and I think I want to research the evolution/adaption of style for the different monumental buildings in Lyon. This city has so much history to unveil and I think it might be fun to research it, of course, through the art! =] How ironic that I am an Art History major.
One other thing. I am not sure if I mentioned it before, but there is another female student that lives here. She was in Spain for the last week and a half, so I had not met her yet, but tonight she came home. Her name is Maria. She is very nice. She speaks better French than I do, and she doesn't speak any English at all. I think that this is going to be difficult for me to communicate with her, but I pray pray pray that it WONT be lol and that hopefully I can use this opportunity to speak more French more frequently. (Because God knows that I speak English to my friends in the program... not good, I know, not good.)
Okay, well I have homework and sleep to catch up on. Have a good night! And watch out for that Nutella!!
A demain,
Mallory
Monday, September 7, 2009
Disney chansons
Salut!
Today was filled with Disney songs!!
In class, my friends (Geo and Katie) and I were trying to remember the words to great Disney songs. We were especially working on "Colors of the Wind," which we got through most of it, but of course I had to YouTube it when I got home.
Donc, regardez:
Today was filled with Disney songs!!
In class, my friends (Geo and Katie) and I were trying to remember the words to great Disney songs. We were especially working on "Colors of the Wind," which we got through most of it, but of course I had to YouTube it when I got home.
Donc, regardez:
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Court et Gentil
Short and sweet.
I have eaten too much ice cream/tarts/chocolate/bread and cheese. This must stop.
Tomorrow I am going swimming/tanning at the pool by the river.
I will not spend any money for two days. (I'll let you know how that goes ;) ..) At least over 10 Euros.
Wanna see some pictures?
Flies are ginormous here.
Pretty view.
Katie and I get this excited when we see eachother!
Ice cream and a playground at midnight! YES!! =]
I have eaten too much ice cream/tarts/chocolate/bread and cheese. This must stop.
Tomorrow I am going swimming/tanning at the pool by the river.
I will not spend any money for two days. (I'll let you know how that goes ;) ..) At least over 10 Euros.
Wanna see some pictures?
Flies are ginormous here.
Pretty view.
Katie and I get this excited when we see eachother!
Ice cream and a playground at midnight! YES!! =]
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