Cutting the Mustard: April 2011

I'm afraid I lied in my last post. I really did have every intention of keeping up with posting regularly, it's just now that I'm in the swing of things here, it's been more difficult to keep up with the blog. But I promise (again) that I will strive to do better.

This post starts with my trip to England with Anna to visit some family friends. We had an awesome time and I really enjoyed all the sights and food. It was also really nice to hear English again. The Woolgars were the best hosts we could have asked for and took us to Windsor right after we arrived. We are also fairly sure we saw the queen, albeit from a distance and she would have been in a car. But still. The next day, we were also able to see Jane Austen's house which was really cool as well. I wish we could've spent more than just a weekend, and I really miss tea with milk now.

The weekend after that I went to LeMans, France with the other SMC girls and we met up with our professor from home. As always, times with Prof Kingcaid (Renee) were interesting, especially from the front seat, but the town was quite cute and we had fun together. We also were able to eat with the nuns of the original order that founded SMC and saw the grave of Father Moreau who founded Notre Dame.

The next weekend was spent in Nice and Monaco where I was met by my mom, grandma and Anna. There were some travel problems on their end (please ask them the story, you won't regret it) and so I spent my night in Nice attempting to find an open brasserie to buy a sandwich and watching NCIS in French. The next day we went into Monaco, which is possibly my new favorite country. It was a gorgeous day and we saw a lot of different things, including the cathedral where Grace Kelly is buried and the Monte Carlo casino. The views of the Mediterranean were fantastic too and it's easy to see why it's such a popular spot. Unfortunately, due to the French train system I had to leave later that night, but my day with the family was really nice.

I was finally able to visit Rome and see where my sister's been living the last 7 months two weeks ago. As my mom and grandma were still in Rome and Anna had classes on Friday, I spent the day with the two travel fiends visiting several major go-to places, including the Capitoline Museum, Roman Forum, the Pantheon, the Colosseum, and the Trevi fountain. It was a really fun day and I also got my first taste of gelato! (I got it two more times, as well. That stuff is addicting.) The next day Anna and I went to the Vatican where we saw the Basilica and the tombs of the popes. Later on that day, we went with some of Anna's friends and saw the Spanish Steps and walked around the main shopping district of Rome. I definitely want to go back and see everything else because there's way too much to do there for just one weekend. It also made me watch Angels and Demons when I returned to France.

This last weekend saw Anna coming to Dijon! We had some fantastic weather and Anna was able to meet some of the friends I've made here, both American and French. She was also able to meet my host parents and Aurelie, all of whom were very happy to meet her, as well. As Anna's train arrived later and we were both tired, Friday ended up being a lazy day, but Saturday we walked around centre ville and I took her to my favorite sandwich shop. She was also able to buy some mustard and a macaroon for her roommate. That night we went to our favorite bar, Byron Bay, and the discotheque, Le Chat Noir, both of which proved very entertaining. Overall, it was a very good weekend and I'm happy Anna was able to see where I've been living.

This weekend we're off to Provence, going to several different towns and just taking in Southern France. We're supposed to have fantastic weather so I'm hoping to come back significantly tanner than I am right now. I'm on the downhill slide of my time in France now and I'm trying to treasure every minute!