Samedi, 13 Octobre 2012: Party Like The French

I woke up to my alarm Saturday morning, around 8h45. I saw that I had a missed call from Danielle so I called her back. We were supposed to go to Cassis that morning. She told me that I didn't have time to get ready since the bus was leaving at 9h00 so I brushed my teeth, put in my contacts, got dressed, and ran out. I had Danielle's Canon wrapped around my neck as I was running to the Gare Routiere and ended up getting hit in the face as a result, ha haha. I wasn't sure why people were staring until I saw my reflection on a window--I had a huge welt on my chin. I got to the bus station at 9h57 and as I walked up the bus was pulling away. Boo...Though I was a bit disappointed, I was also relieved I could veg out the whole day.

I went back to Yann's and blogged for the rest of the morning. He had a heavy night of drinking and got home late in the morning so he was in bed until 13h00. I left the shutters closed until then so there was no light to wake him. After Yann got out of bed, I showered and got ready to meet Lauren. She was having second thoughts about this french guy she was dating so we decided to do the girlfriend thing for the afternoon. We met on Bar Street and walked to Paul's to get a snack. We ate on the fountain in the plaza and talked about girl stuff. 

There was a lot going on in the plaza. There were your usual diners and then there was a huge group of high school-aged guys with foil wigs and ridiculous costumes. I'm really not sure what this was but it looked like hazing. It kind of reminded me of Dazed and Confused..."Air Strike!!!" There's a military school close-by and those are the guys that are usually chanting in the street while we're out bar-hopping, so it's a possibility that the guys were just hazing each other. It's not illegal here ;-)

After the parade of guys left, Lauren and I took a walk around the center of Aix until we reached the Cours Mirabeau. We ran into a few of my friends at the famous King fountain--the Americans were Mark, Oskar, and Joelle, there was a German guy whose name I don't remember, and there's Kyle who's from the northern end of Great Britain. They began drinking at noon and kindly offered Lauren and I a red wine from Cotes du Rhones and an absolutely awful white rum that made me sick for hours. Thanks Mark!!! You're a great friend :-P

Lauren and I continued to walk past the Cours Mirabeau so she could show me a discount grocery store. We ended up at H&M where I talked her into buying a spectacular plaid blazer. I'm not much of a shopper but the style here is so chic--it just speaks to me. I love the preppy look. I'm still buying pieces that I see on the street online though, so I can get them at a fraction of the price. If I don't save at least half off of the original price, I'm not happy. 

I went back to Yann's afterward and Lauren headed to the Augustins apartment where Danielle was waiting. A few hours later all of the girls and I reconvened at the Augustins apartment. We pre-gamed for a few hours as usual--opening up about 6 bottles of wine.

A little before midnight, Gaultier and his friend William from Paris came to collect us for his party. Yes, he left his own party to make sure we came. We made the short walk to Gaultier's which is just around the corner from Yann's. During this time Lauren became extremely inebriated and could barely walk. We somehow got her up the stairs and she passed out in Gaultier's bed. We decided to let her rest for awhile and went out and socialized with the frenchies. There were about 15 guys there and only 2 girls so we added a bit of dynamic to the crowd. We got to practice our french which all of the girls were excited about, but we often came across people who wanted to practice their english. When this would happen we would cut them off and say "En français!" and with their sad faces, they would resume speaking in french :-)

 While we're partying, we're also regularly checking on Lauren to make sure she's breathing. Somehow, everytime we go in to see her, a bunch of french guys follow us in and stare at her--as if they'd never seen a drunk person before. They explained that most of them go through this when they're in high school, which makes sense since their legal drinking age is younger, but still! It's NOT a show!!! We eventually kicked the randoms out and got back to partying. A french house party is not much like an american house party. There is no dance music, definitely no dancing to accompany the music being played, and people are just sitting around and socializing. It's kind of refreshing sometimes to be at a get-together like that, but honestly, I was just bored. The girls ended up feeling the same way. Everyone but Danielle, Kendra, and I left and went to a dance club. Danielle felt obligated to stay because it was her boy's place, and I stayed so that she wouldn't have to keep an eye on Lauren alone. Kendra stayed so she could continue to practice her french, ha haha, but she eventually left as well.

Around 3h00 I walk into Gaultier's room to check on Lauren and there's a couple making out beside her and a guy CUDDLING on her while she's passed out. I looked at him and firmly said "No!" with my mean little finger pointed at him. I immediately grabbed Danielle, woke Lauren up, and we walked out. When we got outside, we saw Gaultier smoking with some of his pals--he looked pissed. Danielle left us to go see what was wrong. It turns out he's pissed that she was "flirting" with William. French guys are so possessive, honestly. Whether you're officially dating or not (not, being the case with Dani and Gaultier), they strongly dislike it when you enjoy speaking to another guy. Jealousy is the norm. A little jealousy is healthy, but I feel like people here take it way too far.

While Danielle was consoling Gaultier, Lauren and I continued to walk down the street. I could hear footsteps behind us but didn't want to look back. About 20 feet down the road a guy asks me if I need help to walk Lauren back. I turn around and it's the guy that was cuddling on her! All I said to him was "No, Go back to the party."--This was my attempt at being nice. He asked again and I said "Yes! We live right here!" I completely lied to his face but it worked.

Danielle and Gaultier meet us halfway back to the Augustins apartment. When we reach the building, Danielle bid farewell to Gaultier and he sadly turned around. I kind of felt bad for him, but he needs to get his emotions under control. 

Danielle and I walk Lauren up about 6 flights of stairs. When we got into the apartment,  Lauren made her way up to Danielle's room while I made a bit of food because I always get drunken munchies. Danielle immediately freaks out because she already has sleeping problems and encourages me to kick Lauren out of her bed. We go upstairs and try but Lauren is back to not moving or communicating. Though we didn't try too hard, we decided it was a lost cause and Danielle came to terms with having to share the bed for the night. 

Don't worry, she slept well :-)

Vendredi, 12 Octobre 2012: The Solution and Winos United

Still distressed over last night's news I awaken at noon from an unrestful sleep. I immediately get online to see if Romy has found a solution. No message from him yet, but I did get some good news. I finally sold my other car in the states!!! I feel so bad for my little brother who's had to show the car to all of these people, but it's officially over. I accepted $800 for the car just to get it off of my parents' driveway.

A few minutes later I get a message from Romy saying that he found the perfect solution. He said that I would be working for his brother's ex-wife, Celine, who needs an au pair and that she'd be okay with me leaving her to work with the Faget family in February. I'm happy that Romy didn't just leave me out to dry but I hate that I had to go through this. I called Celine today to get to know her a bit. She seems like an alright person, pretty nice, but it's difficult to know over the phone. She told me that she would be calling me back tomorrow with her husband who speaks good english so we could get a handle on the official terms of the job.

Content with the fact that I wouldn't have to crawl back to the families that I had already turned down, I went on with my day. It was a bit chilly in the earlier hours so I spent my day inside reading the news...I wish I hadn't. If you ever go to yourjewishnews.com you will learn to hate the world. This is why I don't have any news subscriptions. I just want to read good news! (Ref. to a Something Corporate song) 

Around 17h30, I headed over to the Augustins apartment. There was a free wine tasting event outside of L'Epicerie so the girls and I had planned on using that as an apertif. We made our way to the plaza around 19h00. It was a beautiful part of town with a lot of Baroque architecture. There were about 12 stands serving various types of red wine. I stopped at all of them :-) If you've ever been to a wine festival with me, you would know I get tipsy after the 3rd stand, ha haha. *LIGHTWEIGHT* And yes, I was happily drunk by the end of the tour. 

The winery representatives were pretty cool. Most of them spoke english but encouraged us to speak french. I enthusiastically used all of the french I knew to flirt with the guys there. They thought my american accent was cute and told me that my french speaking skills are pretty good--LIARS. They taught me a few words so I could sound like a french wine snob. For example, "cépage" means varietal, though most of the wines in Aix are blends. 

There was one guy Gaultier (not to be confused with Danielle's Gaultier) that I kind of hit it off with. He's 25--a bit young for me, lol. Kind of cute, super straight which is awesome because most of the guys I've met here seem gay--not that this is a bad thing but it's a problem for a straight girl in search of a boy toy, ha haha. Gaultier gave me his work schedule so I can come see him but lives right by me so I don't think that will be an issue. 

Speaking of guys though, I can't forget to tell you all about the British guy I was kind of "talking to." I was browsing the market alone one day before class and this guy just walked up to me and said "You are absolutely lovely! I must know you!" Jasper as he so calls himself is 38 and a restores houses all over the world. He's currently in Aix because he just restored a house in the center. I gave him my number and e-mail and we wrote back and forth a few times. This guy was a bit odd...He would have my schedule and still try to see me while I'm already occupied. He finally selected a time when we would both be free and I wrote back saying that I would see him then. He replied with "Well, you seem hesitant or nervous. I hope you're more excited when I see you!!! And I hope you're more passionate in real life!!!" That COMPLETELY turned me off. I wrote back saying "If I was nervous, I never would have given you my number or written you back. As for judging my passion through an e-mail, I don't think you can sense a person's emotions through their writing--especially mine. But I just realized that this will not work out. You seem like a nice person but not for me. Good luck in your endeavors." What I really meant to say was...'You're a creep. Don't tell me I'm not passionate in life just because I don't write like a child and obsessively use exclamation points.' Ha haha. He never wrote back or called me ever again. I am happy about that.  

After the wine tasting, 6 of us decided to try to find an authentic french restaurant for dinner. We tried to eat at the restaurant Gaultier suggested but they seat by reservation only. We ended up going back to the Augustins Plaza right under Danielle's apartment. We found a nice restaurant, ate some wonderful food, and called it a night.

Jeudi, 11 Octobre 2012: The Unexpected

My Thursday school day was pretty eventful. We watched Cave of Hidden Secrets in history class--which started a half an hour late. I had seen that video before in english so I didn't have any trouble following. In language class it was Evangelia's birthday so we did about an hour of school work before pausing to eat cakes and drink alcoholic apple cider that our professor had brought.

We all went around the room and sang Evangelia Happy Birthday in our native tongues. The prettiest songs were from Greece (where Evangelia is from) and Germany. 

After all of the cake, cider, and bon bons I felt sick. Like I said before, I do not crave sweets, but I was so hungry today that I just inhaled it all. Bad idea...It was really difficult to get back to work after everyone had gotten a good buzz going on. But we powered through it and finished class.

I waited for Lydia and Danielle to get out of class so we could go to the market together and get stuff for dinner. I owed Lydia and Danielle so I decided it was my turn to cook that night. I made a whitefish and spaghetti in a lemon butter sauce--one of my favorite recipes, except the fish wasn't what I expected here. It was too dry for my liking. I discovered something new at the market that I have fallen in love with though...Canned mackerel in a mustard sauce!!! Mackerel is already my favorite sashimi. This canned mackerel tasted absolutely delicious on bread!!! I guess I'll have to find out how I can buy this in bulk...

We all went outside on the terrace to eat. After dinner, I got on my laptop to check my messages. I had gotten one from Romy and it was not good news. He wrote that Delphine was approved for an extended maternity leave and that they would not need an au pair until January. I was HORRIFIED!!! He said that he didn't find out until that day and that he would have let me know sooner, but honestly, they should have told me that they had put that request in in the first place so that I could plan accordingly. He so strongly pursued me for the job that I didn't expect this. I didn't know what to do. I kind of freaked out a bit. 

He kept on saying that they "have a crush" on me and wanted only me for the job. He asked if it was possible to wait and I told him that with my funds diminishing and no income, it would not be possible. He suggested that I accept one of the other job offers I had gotten and leave that family in January to go work for them after I decided I was unhappy with them. I told him that I would NEVER do that A. because I get along with everyone and I know I would never be unhappy especially with the pre-determined conditions, and B. because I would never leave a family hanging especially when they need me so much. He replied with "I know, and that's why we want you." 

I told him that I had already told the other families 'no' anyway because I had already accepted his offer. It would be weird to write the families back and say 'Hey! I know I told you I found a better offer but it was a fluke and I can still work for your family.' That would just be completely disrespectful and Romy agreed so he said that he would find a solution...

Mercredi, 10 Octobre 2012: Adventures and Pavillon Noir

I only have one class on Wednesdays and it begins at 15h00. I woke up at 11h00 and had plenty of time to relax before class. Every day I walk to school, I take a new route. I've been lost a few times but always end up by something I recognize so I can re-route. I left an hour early today because I wanted to take a totally new road that seemed like it would be a more direct route to school. Ugh...I was so wrong!!! For someone that is really good with navigating, I really put myself to shame. I ended up on the northernmost end of town by the outskirts...Aix is a small place but it's not that small if you're walking and get lost. I immediately called Danielle to let my professor know I was lost again.

Everyone was in a car on this side of town so there was no one I could stop for directions. I eventually got to one construction worker and asked him where I could find Cours Gambetta. First, he tells me that I speak to fast then when I take the time to sound out each syllable, he tells me he's never heard of the street and he's lived in Aix all his life.

Frustrated, I get out my phone and turn on the GPS because it's getting close to class time. The GPS says that I am 3 miles walking distance from school so I take off running. I approach this cemetery that looks like it could be a short cut. I walk in and am immediately freaked out by all of the pictures of the dead on the graves. Nothing scares me but I just had this really eerie feeling being surrounded by a mass of dead people with the wind whistling like voices. It reminded me of a scene from Return to Night of the Living Dead 2. I was expecting for the stones to move and zombies to crawl out.

I start speed-walking around the cemetery--looking for a way out and I see no exit. I go to one of the walls to see if I can just jump over the barrier and the drop is just too far so I climb back down and walk further in. I eventually find an exit on the other side and make my way out. Walking through the cemetery saved me about 10 minutes of walking so it was a good idea, no matter how creepy it was. 

I eventually make it to school a whole 20 minutes late. I did one language exercise with everyone before we had to leave for a mini-field trip. Exhausted from my little adventure, I didn't really want to leave but you can't ever say no to an excursion--especially in France. The entire class walked to my side of town to visit Pavillon Noir--a center for dance here in Aix. The building is so named because the architect decided to go with a monochromatic theme. It's absolutely beautiful!!! 

We are taken around the building by this handsome STRAIGHT french dancer who explained what happened on each floor of the building. We even got to see some dancers work for a little bit before we got kicked out.

The tour ended after about 2 hours and we all parted ways. I was planning on staying in that evening but somehow the girls talked me into coming out. I got ready and went to the Augustins apartment to meet with them. We left after a bit and headed towards Rue de la Verrerie (a.k.a. Bar Street). Kari, Julie, and Molly had to be home at 24h00 (midnight) so we had to find a place to settle quick--it was already 23h00. We walked by The Kerry which had some obnoxious DJ talking on a mic. Deciding to skip on our usual bar, we walked into another with intentions of dancing. As soon as we walk in, the hostess tells us that we can't go into the main room and instead directs us to a table that she's putting together for the 8 of us. We didn't go there to sit so we immediately left. We ended up at Pub O'Shannon where Kari and Lydia get some brews. The rest of us were in the mood to dance though so Maggie, Kami, Molly, and I head toward Wahoo. We end up getting lost and walking in circles. The second time we passed Yann's house I decided my feet had had enough of the heels so I crossed the street to go home. The rest of the girls had the same idea and went in the other direction, saying our goodbyes for the night. 

Lundi à Mardi, 8-9 Octobre 2012: A Surprise Message

Monday after class I hung out at Dani's. She made us dinner and we spent the whole night catching up with our friends from home. That night, I received a message on Au Pair World from an Italian dad that was frantically looking for an au pair. He said that he had sent me messages on Facebook but had received no reply. I immediately get on Facebook and look, I have no unread messages--but if you know FB well enough, you know that you don't always get all of your notifications. So I look him up, add him, and open up a window to chat with him. What do you know??? There are all of the messages he sent me. 

Romy works for an American company--specialised in sourcing. He is also a music producer, you can see one of his videos here http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D_fRrUDMp3_g&h=xAQGh3R4Y You can see two of their older boys at the end of the video. His wife Delphine works for Air France in Marseille. After getting a history on the family, I decided I was also interested in this one. Every day I get another offer and they keep getting better and better. The Fagets live in Le Tholonet which is just a few minutes outside of Aix in a small gated community. They're offering me my own room, car, a second mobile phone with a french number, and 300 euro per month. What I would be required to do is get the kids ready for school and take them there, go to my own classes, pick the kids up after, make them dinner, play with them for a few hours, bathe them, then put them to bed. Easy peezy, right? I'm so used to doing so much more and with having two not-so-angelic younger siblings, I think I'll be okay, lol. 

I agree to meet with Romy on the Cours Mirabeau the next day before class to check out his home and meet his wife. I meet him at the Carousel and he's sitting there with a moped and an italian helmet. He immediately lights up when he sees me, probably because I was a few minutes late and he was tired of waiting, ha haha. We exchange hellos and I immediately pop onto the back of his moped and we take off. I held on for dear life!!! My grip on the handles was almost painful because my nails were digging into my palm. I had not been on the back of a motorcycle/moped in years and had forgotten how free the ride felt. After a few minutes of enjoying the fresh french air and scenic countryside, we arrived at a huge gate. He punches in the code and we ride on in. His wife and youngest son Leonardo are already outside. I meet the two and immediately fall in love with his son. He is such a good, happy baby. What a blessing!!! His wife is beautiful with a classic Mediterranean look. She's extremely friendly and welcoming. 

Romy takes me around the property, showing me my room and all of the amenities. The property has a lot of land, with only 5 houses in the community. You can easily see Mont Saint Victoire from their home. How wonderful would it be to just look out the window and see that everyday??? The Faget's closest neighbor is Christopher, an American professor in Aix. I meet him while he's in a towel just out of a shower, lol. Super friendly guy. I'll probably be hanging out with him a lot.

After all of the introductions, Romy and I sat down and talked about the job in detail. He was completely up-front about everything--all of the problems he had with previous au pairs, what he would like to see, and what I would receive in return. He re-iterated everything we had spoken about the night before and there was nothing new or different. I found comfort in the solidity of everything. After all of the questions had been asked and answered, Romy and I got back on the moped so he could show me where the boys go to school. It literally took a minute to get there. Another plus? All of the boys go to school in the same building, just in different wings. We headed back to Aix after that. Riding on a moped in the country is so soothing. I loved feeling the wind blow my hair with the sun beaming lightly on me. That ride honestly made my day. 

Romy dropped me off on the Cours Mirabeau, we quickly affirmed that we were both on the same page and would like to move forward and went in our separate ways. 

I went to class, then met up with my friends in CEA at Carrefour for happy hour. I told everyone about my new family and ordered a Kir to celebrate. It's a french cocktail made with white wine and black currant syrup. At this time, I realized I would have to tell the Philizors that I am retracting my acceptance of their job as well as tell all of the other families that I'm no longer interested in them...With numerous lunch 'appointments' to hang out with the potential families this upcoming weekend, I got nervous about having to cancel. This stressed me so much but I knew I was doing the right thing by agreeing to work with the Fagets. They are the best option for me. 

After happy hour Kari, Danielle, and I headed over to Lydia and Maggie's apartment for dinner. Lydia made mashed potatoes, a quiche, and stuffed peppers. Danielle and I made our special salad. And, of course, Kari brought the wine :-) This dinner was the perfect way for me to relax until I realized I had to go home and tell Yann that I was leaving on Sunday...

Vendredi à Dimanche, 5-7 Octobre 2012: Scenes Out of Movies

Friday morning I receive a message from Kami telling me that I needed to get ready to go hiking. The rest of the girls had asked me to come the previous night and I had completely forgotten! Though I was a bit hungover, I agreed to go. I talked Yann into coming somehow--even though he doesn't like to hike. We all met at the bus station and Vivienne informed us that we weren't actually hiking, that it would be more of a touring excursion. That was Yann's cue, ha haha, he turned around and left. He hates doing touristey things. The rest of us got on the bus and headed towards Mont Saint Victoire.

The bus ride was rough. I don't know who teaches these guys how to drive but they take curves so tight and gun it when we're on a straight road whether we're going uphill or downhill. Most of us were feeling nauseated from the ride, mostly because we were hungover, but also because there was no air on the bus. Molly, Lydia, and one of the guys had to move to the front of the bus because they had motion sickness. About 200 yards from our destination Lydia grabs Lauren and motions that she needs to puke. Lauren immediately tells Vivienne and the bus driver stops. Once the doors open Lydia runs out and projectile vomits [Sorry Lyds!!! I accidentally looked!] It was such an emergency that she didn't even bother to hide it. While she's getting sick, Vivienne turns to all of us and asks if we want to walk the rest of the way or have her get back on the bus. Lauren immediately volunteers us to walk because she's not feeling well either, the rest of us concur, and off the bus we went.

We walk the 200 yards to the French Foreign Legion. The station is pretty nice and scenic with lots of grape fields/mini-vineyards. We checked out the museum which displays all of the past uniforms by years and areas where worn. There's also a shop and bar which we didn't take advantage of. After we saw some animals, we got back on the bus to headed back toward Aix. We got off the bus at our next stop. All we saw was a building situated right in front of Mont Saint Victoire. When we stepped off the bus I felt like we were on a movie set because of how perfect the mountain backdrop was. Just looking in front of you, you would see a huge, rugged, white mountain with parasailers floating all around. It was breath-taking...

We walked into the building with the intention of walking into watch a film, but it wasn't working so we took a tour of the museum and property. This is where we saw the fossilized eggs of Gigantosaurus (sp?) We left the property to go on a short hike and headed back toward the entrance to get on the next bus home. We were all traumatized from the bus rides so it was a lax night for us.

SATURDAY MORNING...We all got up early to go to the market to make a buffet style lunch for everyone. Krystle had had the brilliant idea of going to an island off of Marseille called Frioul. It was originally only me, Dana, and Krystle but I decided that more would be merrier so I invited the rest of my girls. 

We took a bus to Marseille that morning before getting on a ferry to the islands.

We passed by Chateau d'If which popular due to its reference in The Count of Monte Cristo. 

When we got to Frioul, we were all in shock. It was SO BEAUTIFUL!!! You always see scenery like this in movies but you never actually think that you'll see them with your own eyes. It was so surreal!!!

After some hardcore scouting, we stopped at a private cove and got in the water. The girls swam out to a rock in the middle but I wasn't so sure about myself so I stopped when the water got too deep and turned back around. The girls swam back a few minutes later and we broke out the food and wine. We spent the rest of the day bathing in the sun, drinking wine, and indulging in some delicious cheeses. We left the island before dark. By the time we got back to Aix, we were so drained from the heat that we stayed in for the night--even on a Saturday...

SUNDAY was a big day for the Aixois. It was the annual mass garage sale. There was so much junk there and it was on the street that Yann lives on so all I had to do was walk outside and I was there. I met the girls there of course and we walked up and down Cours Sextius together. I'm not much of a shopper so I grabbed Danielle's Canon and started shooting some pics.  After about 3 hours of browsing, I got tired so I went home to prepare to meet the next family looking for an au pair. I was with the family for all of 10 minutes before I told them definitively "NO." The kids were biting each other and hitting their parents...Not my gig and they definitely couldn't pay me enough to deal with that.

Sunday evening was also relaxed. Kami, Danielle, and I had dinner together while the rest of the girls used their Groupon at Patacrepe. Kami made spaghetti with goat cheese and spices, Danielle made this delicious salad that was inspired by Krystle's German ex's grandmother, and I pan-fried the chicken tenderloins. 

After dinner, I skyped with another potential au pair family--The Loyers. The mom is a D.O. while the dad does international business and is never home. The family consists of 3 well-behaved girls aged 5, 7, and 11. They live just 15 minutes from Aix so I'm seriously considering this family even though I already said yes to the Philizor family...

Dimanche à Jeudi, 30 Septembre à 4 Octobre 2012: A Recap of the Work Week

Sunday October 30th was a pretty eventful day. I told you all about the potential au pair family I met. I reviewed the pros and cons--for hours. I decided that though this family offered a lot of great things, it was not the place for me. I know, I know...Everyone keeps saying I'm crazy for not wanting to live in a palace on a vineyard...But, I need to be practical. The commute to the vineyard would have been 30 minutes by bus, which I would have to take with 3 young girls whenever both of the parents were using the cars, and then we would have had to get off at a bus stop 10 minutes from the house and wait for one of the parents to come get us...That just sounded like such a hassle. And with the family living in the countryside, the winter would make the roads more treacherous and the travel time would be extended. I decided to not make life harder for myself...Before I politely declined, I found an e-mail from the mother saying that they decided they didn't need an au pair anyway. Ahhh, the cosmos are aligned...

I made a traditional italian risotto that night. It was the first time I'd made it without using measuring cups. I was so nervous but it turned out terrific! I shared it with Molly, Kami, and Danielle--they liked it too, or at least they said they did. Ha haha. Here's a close-up of the risotto. We didn't have anything on the side, so it would've looked lonely on a plate.

The 1st of October was the start of my french education journey. I'm taking 20 credit hours which is the minimum here. This week we get to try out every class and decide officially which ones we want to take by the start of the next week.

Monday consisted of Histoire de Français at 13h00, followed by a 30 minute break, and then Langue Français with my favorite prof Madame Moreels from 15h00 to 17h30. My history prof looks like a much older Jason Mraz. I haven't heard him sing, but he has a nice speaking voice. He's pretty cool though. Though I already love history, he makes it even more interesting. This will be a great class. We started our discussion on the cave drawings in Lascaux. They're the oldest 'graphics' discovered from the Paleolithic Age.

I met two americans in class today, Dana and Vanessa, who are both from Nebraska. These girls are super cool and extremely funny. We walked to the Cours Mirabeau after class to get our books and some out-of-this-world ice cream. I got the Tiramisu flavor...YUM!!!

Later that evening, Danielle and I decided that we wanted to go out to eat. We weren't super hungry so we ended up walking around for hours, looking at the different restaurants and their menus. It was amazing to be able to see such variety in such a small area. We ended up going to an italian restaurant that was just up the street from her apartment. I ordered fettuchini carbonera and Danielle got a meat lasagna that had the best sauce I've ever tasted. We spent less than 20 euro for the meal, so it we weren't exactly splurging, but we definitely got more than or money's worth. Plus, our waitress was awesome. She enjoyed practicing her english with us. 

Tuesday came around, I had French at 8h30, then French Affairs at 12h00, and Phoenetics at 15h30. I've decided not to take French Affairs. It's mostly business talk and I've never taken a business class in my life--nothing will make it interesting now...especially not learning it in a foreign language. I ended up missing Phoenetics because Yann needed me home to let the internet guy in. The guy ended up not showing up until hours later. No big deal though, the only thing I missed in class was how to pronounce the french alphabet, ha haha. I think I'll live.

I waited for Danielle to get out of class that day because she had invited me to her program's weekly happy hour at the Carrefoure. The CEA program is so great!!! Vivienne--the program director, organizes a ton of excursions at a low price and allows anyone to come--whether they are CEA or not. I'm so grateful to have met these girls and Vivienne because my program pretty much just exists to take your money. There is no such thing as a CSA excursion or happy hour. CEA is the best! And I guess the rest of the world has recognized it because they were just ranked #1 for study abroad programs! Go Vivienne!!! We love you!!!

Later that night, Danielle, Kari, and I went over to Lydia and Maggie's apartment to make dinner. Lydia made these delicious zucchini wands stuffed with 3 cheeses, Maggie made a traditional stringy pasta in a red sauce, and I made my classic chicken in a balsamic/red wine reduction. It was delicious! We've made these dinners a regular thing and I'm so happy for it. You all know I like to eat :-)

I didn't have class until 15h00 on Wednesday so I agreed to meet with another au pair family for lunch. This couple was younger, both 32, with two girls who are 4 and 1.5 years old. They wanted to meet at Haagen Daaz on the Cours Mirabeau and though I left with plenty of time to get there, I ended up getting lost, ha haha. I was a few minutes late but they were sweet about it. They decided to take me to a QuickBurger for lunch so we could talk. I'm not sure but I think they thought that because I was American that I'd miss McD's...Anyway, they're super cool and don't require much work to be done. No cleaning, no cooking, and just 2 hours of babysitting per day with weekends completely off and a cell phone that they would supply. But they live 15-20 minutes outside of Aix and the car wouldn't be available all the time. Also, pay is only 70 euro every other week. I haven't told them yet that I'm not interested.

Thursday morning while waiting for class to begin, I heard students screaming outside. It turns out that they were on strike because they think they work too hard. Earlier that week, there was a police strike. And yes, they always get what they want, but that would not fly in the states. 

Class began on time. It was French Journalism at 8h30. The professor seemed a bit snobby but I figured I was being a snob for thinking that. Boy...I was wrong...He truly was!!! Monsieur Galibert normally teaches Level 5 classes and we are Level 3, he was just substituting for Madame Martins who is sick. Level 1 is for beginner french and level 5 is advanced. Though he promised to speak slow, he forgot. He would also use the word being defined in a definition...I guess no one ever taught him not to do that. Probably hinted by our confused visages, he told us that if we were confused about something, that we should raise our hand. We were confused about EVERYTHING, so we decided not to interrupt the class with our questions since he didn't know the proper way to explain a concept anyway. I'm not sure if it's the American way or my way, but if I don't understand something, I take a note, look it up, then if I still can't find it, I go to my prof. Well, he didn't like this method...He ended up zeroing in on this quiet chinese girl. He asked her to repeat what he had just described, she got out her pocket translator and he immediately told her that she couldn't use it, so she told him that she didn't understand. He then asked for her note paper, he practically rips it out of her hands and holds it up for the class to see, scoffing, saying "So...great. You only copied down the words I had written on the board." He tosses the paper back to her and starts on the rest of the class. He asked who understood his lecture and only one person had their hand up--Francis, who's been living in France for years. After being a condescending tool and telling everyone that if they don't understand him even though he's being easy on us, he called a break, and some of us left the class--for good.

Crystal, Dana, and I left the class together and headed toward the market to look at the goods. I didn't have class for another 3 hours and the girls didn't have another class until that afternoon so we spent the day shopping. I bought some pearl earrings and a rune pendant for good luck.

Thursday ends my work week. I have no classes Friday. I can't wait to tell you what happened this weekend!!! I'll post tonight :-)

Until then!