Finals

The university is blocked again which means the strike continues...

One thing I've failed to mention before is that after the students block all entrances with desks and chairs, they sit outside and guard them. I had my grammar final this Wednesday so we had to sneak into our building. Luckily there is a fire escape kind of staircase and it was early in the morning, so no guards were present at the time. However, all the classroom doors were locked. We had to call an inside source to let us in and, after we managed to find a key, we open the door and there are no desks or chairs. We then grabbed some from another classroom (we were told to do it quietly or "They will hear you") and sat down in fear for a four hour-long exam.

I am currently working on my final paper for 18th century lit. One more page and I will be officially done will the semester :)

Tomorrow night I will be heading to the Marseilles airport, where I will be sleeping and waiting for a 6:00am flight to Portugal. See you after I get back!

Vacances de Pâques

I spent two lovely weeks traveling around Switzerland (and a little bit of Italy) for my spring vacation. I spent around two days in each city and they were all vastly different from the rest. Other than the fact that Switzerland robbed me blind (they still use the Franc...) I would go back in a heartbeat.

Let's start with Geneva...Saw all the touristy destinations and spent a lovely two days with my friend.

Interlaken was my favorite place by far! It is what I generally picture as the stereotypical "Swiss" town. We spent our days hiking around the lake, watching paragliders land and celebrating Andrea's 21st birthday. We even saw Swiss cows!

The third stop was Basel. We spent three days CouchSurfing over Easter. There's generally not much to see or do but it was a nice quiet weekend. The zoo was a lot of fun.

My last stop in Switzerland was Lugano, which is in the southern, Italian-speaking part of the country. This place was crazy touristy and soooo hilly. Be prepared to climb up and down. The lake was very pretty but I do not think I'd want to go back. (Its certainly a Swan-filled country...or so I noticed...)

My final leg of the journey was in Genova, Italy. I didn't spend much time there but in all honesty I didn't get a very good impression of the country. The aquarium was kind of disapointing (its the biggest in Europe but very small compred to Baltimore). It's amazing how quickly you notice the differences between the Italian and the French.

Overall it was a really nice week, despite some of the disappointments. Unfortunetly its back to schoolwork. I've completed two of my five classes and will finish two more once I finish my papers. As much as I love France and speaking French I have to say that I am looking forward to going home. I can't wait to see my family and enjoy the comforts of home. Three more weeks! The depart will be bittersweet.

Boatride on les Etangs

Last Saturday our study abroad program provided us with our second trip of the semester - a boat ride on the sea and les etangs.

Again, just like our trip to Provence, the weather was beautiful.

Or not.... I really was hoping for photos of crystal blue water and sunshine, but that dream didn't come true

First we drove to the Gaur d'Adge and hoped on to a boat to coast around the Mediterranean Sea. The water was very choppy so I was feeling a bit nauseous and had a headache.

We got off the boat and ate lunch in the town of Adge. We stayed in the restaurant for two and half hours because it was raining too hard to be outside.

Then, to the dismay of many students, we had to get back on the boat and travel through le Canal du Midi. You know it's a bad trip when everyone busts out their books and starts reading...They'd rather study for their exams than enjoy the ride. I wouldn't be so bitter if I hadn't known that in all the years past, they've treated the students to a weekend sunny in Barcelona. I know they can't control the weather but I'm pretty sure we paid the same amount of money and our boat ride doesn't cost the same as a weekend in Spain.

In other news,

THE STRIKE IS OVER!

It was frustrating not being able to go to class and learn, because that's sort of the reason I'm here, but in the end it worked out to our advantage. They had to extend the school year for the French students so we don't have to take final exams in our integrated classes :)

Now it's off to Switzerland and Italy for two weeks for spring break. After that I planned a trip to Portugal and Spain for four days. And sadly, after that it'll be time to go home already. Time flies when you're in France!

Toulouse

A friend and I took a trip to Toulouse this weekend. We didn't have anything particular in mind to see or do, but we managed to find a few neat activities.

Toulouse is the fourth largest city in France. Its very much a part of the south so the accent there is very thick when compared to Montpellier. Its growing on me though... I'm starting to find it pleasing. I wonder if I'll have a southern French accent when I go back to the states...

First thing we saw on Saturday was La Basilique Saint Sernine. I was told its the oldest basilica in all of Europe. It looks kind of like a wedding cake from the outside...The inside holds lots of relics. Entry is free but you have to pay two euros to go down into the crypt...I'd say its not worth the price unless you're really into religious relics...

We passed through la Place du Capitol, the main square in the heart of the city. Notice all the buildings are rose colored. Toulouse is known as la Ville Rose (the Pink City). I personally find it to be more of a rust color...

We spent the afternoon relaxing in Parc de la Prairie Filters. Its the largest green space in the city. Part of the park is a Japanese garden, complete with cherry blossoms, koi fish, a temple, and a golden buddah.

Day two we went to La Musee Abattoirs, a modern art museum. The collection wasn't very large and the artists aren't incredibly well known, except for one work by Picasso.
We decided to couch surf for the night because we're too cheap to stay in a hostel. Check out CouchSurfing.com if you want to find out more. Basically you sleep on a random strangers couch while you provide one antoher with an interesting cultural experience. Its basically for those interested in a bit of a cultural exchange. We stayed with a girl in her apartment...Hung out, had dinner and spent the night with her friends. Overall, a lovely evening!

La grève continue

Professors are still on strike after a month and a half. And to make things even better, a couple of weeks ago the students decided to show their support and go on strike too! And how do French students go on strike?

By physically barricading the university, of course!

Last Tuesday, hundreds of volunteers piled chairs and desks in front over every single entrance to every single building on campus. That night, to show just how dedicated they are, many students pitched tents and slept in and around the buildings. I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that there was torrential downpour rain that night into the next day...

So here we are, over a week later, and the campus is still blocked with no sign of letting up any time soon.

I find it fascinating at how well organized this strike has been...Look at how neatly they've placed these chairs. Very ironic when you think about how much of a mess the French university system is overall. If only they could be this must effort into providing and caring about a quality education...
But, negative aspects aside, it has been a huge cultural experience and its interesting to be here during something so huge.

C'est la vie francaise!

Lille

The last three days of my vacation were spent in the northern city of Lille. It seemed like such a random city to visit and we were asked on several occasions why we were there. Apparently, not many Americans visit Lille so we were treated with a lot of enthusiasm and graciousness! We were asked on several occasion if we were British (and on one occasion German). Northern France is known for its hospitality and friendliness and I can now vouch for this! C'est vrai! Every one we met was incredibly nice.

We were fortunate enough to get in contact with a local guy who took us out at night and gave us tips on what do to in the city. I don't think our trip would have been the same without him and his local knowledge. He introduced us to several of his friends and we ended up having a great time! I think without the guidance of a local, Lille isn't all that great of a city if you go on vacation. There are some museums but other than that, I'd say there's not much to do if you're not in the loop.

The first day we went to La Piscine (The Swimming Pool). It's an old pool converted into a museum. They had some interesting pieces of art and is definitely worth checking out if you're ever in the north. That night our newly found friend took us to a bar to enjoy some live music (one band played traditional music of the north - very cool and cultural!).

On day two we ate at the Restaurant Universitaire for 2,85euros (its similar to the university restaurant in Montpellier - a lot of food for less than 3euros) and took a guided tour of the city. Honestly, the tour wasn't worth the price. We didn't see anything incredibly exciting and I'd say it was too long (2 and half hours of walking!). That night we went to the Palais des Beaux-Arts, a huge museum. They were having a nocturnal exhibition, free for students. Students from the college of architecture showed off their unique chair designs and we saw a "concert" from John Cage. Actually, this was a concert de silence...He sat at a piano and didn't play for 4 minutes and 33 seconds....Very strange. I guess it was what some would call l'ART.

On day three we walked around La Citadelle and the zoo. There were two red pandas (the cutest animals ever)! For dinner we ate faluche with regional cheese and drank beer at an awesome restaurant which was recommended to us by a man at our hostel. While the south of France is known for its wine, northern France is known for its beer. Try a kriek (cherry flavored beer from Belgium), its amazing! The name of the place is La Pate à Sel - go there, I highly recommend it. After dinner we went to quiz night at a bar with some locals and ended up having an great night out.

My friend and I bought Lille t-shirts and we shall wear them proudly!

Chantilly

Day three of my northern France trip lead me to Chantilly. It was about a 25 minute train ride from Paris... The total cost of a round trip ticket from Gare Paris Nord is 7euros with a 12-25 card. The reason we went was to see the Chateau de Chantilly. I have a strange affinity for castles so if I'm near one I want to go. I spent a few days traveling around castles in the Loire Valley a few years ago and absolutely loved every minute of it. Chantilly, however, is not a royal residence for kings or queens, but a chateau built for the descendants and relatives of the royal family. Most notably, the grand Prince de Conde, Louis II de Bourbon.

The Princes de Conde loved to hunt and race horses. The chateau is decorated with several hunting paintings and there is a large horse stable and race track on the grounds. The parc is huge and unfortunately we didn't have enough time to see it all. I want to go back just to finish walking around the gardens!

There is a museum located in the chateau called the Musee Conde, which houses the second richest collections of artwork, second to the Louvre.