6:56 p.m.

Hello, all! I am just waiting for Annie to finish cooking supper. She is a wonderful cook…I feel myself gaining weight already! I just finished planning a trip to Lyon, France for eleven other people and myself from AIFS. We are going on Saturday and going to see the sights and go shopping. Right now, there are HUGE sales in France (up to 70% off some things).

Today, I had class at 8:30 to 10:30. It was so interesting because I found out there is a boy in my class named Andrew. The crazy coincidence of meeting Andrew is that he is from Nebraska. On top of that, he knows people from Norfolk that I know. What a small world! I couldn’t believe it!

I have been extremely tired and cold lately. Maybe the two go hand-in-hand. The weather here has gotten progressively colder every day this week. It isn’t the same kind of cold as Nebraska or South Dakota, though. It isn’t as bad as in the US. I guess I was just spoiled with the nice weather the first week, and now, I am expecting it all the time.

Funny story: Annie was asking about my family and I went down the list of everyone who was important to me. When I got to Vern, she asked what he did. When I explained that he was a manager of a factory that made cheese, she was instantly excited. (The French LOVE their cheese!) She began asking about what kinds of cheese they made, and I told her the only two I knew; cheddar and Colby jack. She went on a rant about how she LOVED cheddar and how hard it is to get in France. She told me I had to send some of the cheese Vern’s plant made as soon as I get back to the states. Don’t know how that will be possible…but the fact that Annie was so excited over cheddar cheese amused me. Especially, since the French have much better cheeses than cheddar!

6:11 p.m.

I need a break from doing French homework. So far, my homework for tomorrow is extremely easy. I don't understand why I had such a hard time understanding my teacher on Friday.

My weekend has been very low key, which I am grateful for. Yesterday, I went to lunch at a creperie and had a crepe with chicken, red peppers, and Italian cheeses. It was amazing. Eva, Tammy, Katie F, Jordan, and I felt it was neccessary for a little "retail therapy" and went to "Grand-Place." You must say "Grand-Place" with a French accent! If you say it with an American accent, no one would understand what the heck you are talking about. Grand-Place is the centre-commercial (or mall) of Grenoble. In order to de-stress, I thought it best to buy an American brand of tennis shoes (Asics) and some jogging tights. So far, I am positive this has been the best investment I have made since coming to Grenoble. After the mall, I went for a long jog through a beautiful park near my apartment. Before I left Annie's, Annie told me how "American" I looked. I had on my tennis shoes, jogging pants underneath my running shorts, a long-sleeve shirt under a short-sleeve shirt, and my iPod attached to my clothing. Throughout my jog, I realized she wasn't joking. People were staring at me. They COULD tell I was American by how I was dressed. It was bizarre to be the outsider. It really didn't bother me as much as it would have if I was in the states; I figured, I don't know any of these people, and will most likely never see them again, so I might as well just ignore the confused stares.

My run helped clear my head, put me in a great mood, and gave me a boost of energy. I came back to Annie's apartment with a much better attitude! Annie had friends over and they helped her put new light fixtures up in my room. Along with pretty, green drapes, my room got a make-over in the time I was gone. We had pizza for dinner and I got drunk off of three glasses of wine and a glass of champagne. I love France. Annie made me show her friends the naughty French book I got for Christmas. They were entertained and wanted copies of the book sent to them when I go back to the U.S. I am glad I could be a part of the dinner entertainment! It was exciting to fit in...well, as much as that is possible for the time being.

Thank God it's Friday! This week, classes were really tough and I think I have had a little bit of a culture shock. I had a minor break-down this morning, but I ran to Miranda's office and explained my dilemma. The problem I had was my teacher for my language classes was extremely difficult to understand. One minute, she would be explaining something, then, she would jump to something else. I felt like I couldn't understand a word she was saying, so I had to tune her out in order to not start crying right in the middle of class. It was AWFUL! Then, after I had spoken with Miranda about it...actually sobbed to her about it...she totally understood. She explained her concern with me being with that teacher even before I had started class. Miranda's thoughts about that teacher were that the teacher was much better at teacher upper level French classes. Apparently, she is a few French fries short of a happy meal. I love Miranda! She did her magic and had me moved out of that teacher's class to a class with a more structured teacher. That takes a huge load off my shoulders!

After that little cry session, I came home and slept for a couple hours and then met up with Jenn and Eva for a beer. It was a relief to just hang out with some girls who spoke English! I never realized how much I really love talking in English. I didn’t know how much my brain could hurt because French! I’m sure it will get easier…well I hope so anyway! :)

10:24

Class is so much more stressful that I could have imagined. I felt like an idiot a few times today, but that is life. To make my day a little better (after four hours of only French), I needed a "chocolat chaud"-hot chocolate and it made me feel a million times better. It snowed today, and the snow was strange...huge, wet flakes all day long. People use umbrellas to protect themselves from the snow. It was really pretty, but not very comfortable to be wet.

At the moment, in addition to my school work, I am planning out trips to Barcelona, Marseille, Morocco or Portugal, and Florence/Milan (in addition to the already planned trips to Paris, Geneva, and Provence). It is super cheap to travel around Europe-once you are here anyway! I can't wait for my first trip, which will potentially be next weekend.

Tomorrow, NO SCHOOL pour moi! I am going to sleep in, study, relax, and possibly go out with some friends! Can't wait!

9:19 p.m.

I haven’t had a moment to myself since I got to Grenoble. Sorry it took so long to make this entry.

Grenoble, France is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. The mountains surround us and when I ride the tram to school, it looks as though I am looking at a backdrop from a movie set. The view is breath-taking! There are so many things about Grenoble I want to explain. For one, tomatoes taste so much sweeter here than in the U.S. I have figured out why the French are so much healthier than Americans. They eat food that is grown in the nearby countryside and nearly everything at the markets seem to be organic. They eat tons of fruits and vegetables! They walk up stairs to stay in better shape and don’t take the “lifts” even when they are there. I walk or take the tram EVERYWHERE!

Another thing about the French; they don’t wear bright colors. I’m sure I stick out like a sore thumb and they realize I am a foreigner. But, when I open my mouth, all of their possible doubts are confirmed. When I ask someone a question in French, like “Ou est le Place de Notre Dame?” they respond to me in a language I have named FRENGLISH. The French are extremely helpful if you just try to speak their language. I have not had anyone be “snotty” to me, yet. Yet, being the keyword.

The French don’t use normal pillows. They use body pillows, but they are round body pillows. They look like a long cylinder. When I first got to l’Hotel des Alpes, I found this little quirk very interesting. Also, the French don’t seem to believe in heat. Especially, my host mom, Annie. She is a firm believer that cold air keeps one looking young. A Brazilian friend of hers told her that little fact. Annie does, indeed, look younger than her age so maybe it is true. She is a 45 year old, unmarried/no kids woman who has traveled the world. She lived in Singapore, was an au pair in London, has been to the U.S. (apparently, once for a Bruce Springstein concert), and has relics from all over the world. Her parents are Muslim. She is atheist. She is “French” but her roots are “Bastille”-don’t ask me exactly what this is. She is a bilingual secretary. At dinner, sometimes we listen to African music, which is actually very entrancing. Annie is a great cook and is extremely open-minded for being a French woman. She, herself, described French women as being too structured and a little snooty. She is interesting to talk to, especially, when she tells all her stories of her travels around the world and about different cultures she has experienced.

In my bedroom, I have a bed, a desk, and armoire, and a Moroccan rug and a rug from Afghanistan. I love the mesh of different cultures within her fifth-floor flat.

I have had orientations since I got here. Miranda, my resident director, has taught me everything from how to eat in front of my host family to how to use both a fork and knife at all times. She has taught us how to stay away from French men and how to not offend French people. They are a lot different from Americans but this has been a learning experience.

My first French class was a bit of a disaster. I only understood about 25% of what the professor was saying, and it was exhausting to try to keep up. I ended up zoning out a couple of times-if I didn’t, I would have broken down. An LONG hour and a half later, I wanted a stiff drink. My new motto, “Try your best.” I am going to do the best I can, but it isn’t the end of the world if I do poorly. I am sure my French will get better, but for now, I just feel a little lost. I know things will become easier!

London, England Sightseeing and My First Day in France

10:37 p.m.

It seems like years since yesterday morning when I was on a tour bus, discovering all of the treasures of London. Our tour guide, Shawn, had a Scottish accent and was hilarious. He was bald and made fun of himself constantly, and of the British people walking on the streets in addition to many crazy facts and historical references that involved the sights we drove by. I saw Westminster Abbey, drove over London and Tower Bridge, was on Fleet Street and Drury Lane (where the muffin man lives). Buckingham Palace and Big Ben were a lot bigger than I had imagined them to be. Laura and I went to the British Museum and saw the Rosetta stone, Egyptian artifacts-including the mummy of Cleopatra, medieval artifacts, Ancient Greek and Roman statues, and an Easter Island statue. The history and culture of London dates so far back and the architecture is so different from anything that I have ever seen in the US, it is hard to imagine what things would have looked like in the Victorian era, the Renaissance, or the Middle Ages. I felt as though I was in another world and I wish I would have been able to stay longer to explore more of the city. The historical implications of London were fascinating to me; I hope to go back someday-maybe even while I am still in Europe on a weekend trip.

France is a whole different story. I have already caught on to the laid back vibe the French express when eating or speaking while only being here for a total of 12 hours. All day today was more or less an orientation within the hotel with our Resident Director, Miranda. She is wonderful and has already been very helpful in conveying information that I was worried about. I discovered today that I meet my host family on Saturday night and move in. Sunday is a day to myself/with my new family, and Monday, I will take a placement test that is the determining factor for the classes I will take. Classes start on Tuesday. The whole process is very nerve-wracking.

Today, I had my first real conversation with a French woman. It was a little intimidating but I communicated with her well enough for her to understand. I asked her for my room key, but she didn't have it so she asked me if I wanted her to open my door for me anyway. I told her yes. We went up the "lift" and she asked me if I was from the United States. I told her I was, and then she asked if I was tired. I told her I was because I had only 2 hours of sleep last night. She asked where I was from in the U.S. and I told her South Dakota/Nebraska. She had no idea where that was so I just told her it was in the middle of the U.S. It was an exhilarating feeling to be able to speak to a French woman in French. :) Our group went out to dinner and I met a couple other students who have been here since the fall. Dinner was okay, but dessert was fantastic. It was a pie-like dessert but the berries were on top of the crust and there was no filling. Simple but delicious! I can't wait to meet my family and get a normal routine. Also, I think I will be traveling most weekends to different parts of Europe with people in my group. I would like to go to Spain or Marseille for my winter break. Some of the people in my group were even thinking about going to Morocco! There are so many opportunities here and I don't want to miss out on anything. My main goal is to see as much of Europe as possible in four months! Wish me luck!

4:31 a.m. in South Dakota, 10:31 a.m. London

My plane just landed and I am waiting to get off. There were cancelled flights all week because London had a snowstorm. It could take up to 20 minutes to even get the plane connected to a hanger/gate.

My first international flight went well enough. I was not crammed at all. There was, luckily, an empty seat between a crabby lady who slept the majority of the flight and I. We were served dinner. The choices were beef or lasagna. Of course, I chose the latter. The shocker about the meal was the flight attendants indifferent way of asking me if I would like wine with my meal. HELL YES! I had a chardonnay and did not expect to feel anything from it since I had just eaten a large portion of the lasagna, but sure enough, this lightweight was tipsy by the end of the meal. I listened to music, wrote in my journal and typed short messages to friends that I could copy and paste to their Facebook walls as soon as I could find somewhere to use internet.

The only bad thing about my flight was shockingly not the length, but it was the annoying young man who would not stop talking to me. He sat across the isle from me. Before the end of my flight, I knew more than I wanted to know about this frequent flier. He received a bachelor degree in Business Administration, was working on his MBA, and traveled to Ireland for a study abroad program with AIFS when he was a sophomore in college. He is from Springfield, Missouri, and has been to Russia (where the in-flight meals are apparently terrible). He is on his way to India to study for the next two years. Oh, AND, he loves playing cards-hearts, speed, pitch, you name it, he knows loves it. Apart from the fact I sat next to a “chatty-Kathy” who refused to give me some peace and quiet for the better part of an hour, my flight was wonderful!

The next step is to go through customs, get my luggage, and meet with an AIFS representative. Wish me luck! “Bon chance!”

* * *

It is 11:30 p.m. here and I am completely exhausted. I can't believe I am even still awake! To finish what happened earlier today...I was met at the airport by a representative from AIFS who took 6 of us back to the hotel. I made friends with a girl named Emily from Salt Lake City, Laura from Cincinnati (who is also my roomie), and a boy named Jordan from Green Bay. They made me feel a lot better because now I know I am in exactly the same boat as everyone here. Basically, no one knows anything! As we drove through London, I was shocked! It looked like I had just entered Peter Pan or Mary Poppins. Houses are beautiful, but small with very rich-looking architecture. People drive crazy, not to mention on the wrong side of the road and on the wrong side of the car. For awhile in the van, I thought I would die. Once we went to the hotel, I was on a mission. Find a way to contact someone in the U.S. Turns out, international phone calls are not only expensive, but a pain in the butt to actually make. There are over twenty digits to plug in to the "tele." Emily, Laura, Jordan, and a couple more AIFS students went with me to Starbucks to use their WiFi, and I finally was reconnected with the only world I have ever known. It was a little surreal not being able to just pick up a phone or hop online to speak to people I am so used to talking to. After I had enough of the coffee shop's extremely slow internet service, I went back to the hotel and slept for a grand total of an hour and a half.

At 6:00 p.m., we were told to go to the basement bar of the hotel for drinks and information. I got a "Beck." The beer really wasn't as bad as I expected and I was a little tipsy by the end of the little meeting. I met most of the people going with me to Grenoble and had a lot of my questions answered-which calmed me down (along with the booze!) Tomorrow, sightseeing and a tour of London is the plan.

Hungry and tipsy, a few of us decided to go to a local pub for a beer and some bar food. We walked for about 10 minutes and Laura, Emily, Katie, and I arrived at a busy little pub called Hereford Arms ( I think). I had a "Carling"-a British beer, and some risotto. It was delicious. By the end of dinner and our drinks, we had learned about one another's fears, families, hobbies, dreams, backgrounds, and loves. It was the start of a few friendships I hope to maintain in Grenoble.

We walked back to the hotel, observing everything from the oddly parked cars in the street to the mansion-like buildings around us. As I lay in my twin bed at the hotel, I still am a little scared, homesick, and overwhelmed, but my new life seems very promising!

The Beginning

As I sit in the Chicago airport waiting for my seven hour flight to London, I am making last minute phone calls to everyone I love. I am nervous, anxious, and scared, but excitement outweighs all of the negative emotions. I already miss everyone more than I can say. I miss everything about the U.S., and I haven't even left yet. My last meal was a double-cheeseburger with no mustard, a medium fry and ranch from McDonalds. Lame, I know. I am afraid of losing the comforts of home, although, France does have McDonalds at least.

The second I passed through security at Terminal 5 (the international terminal) I exchanged $60 for euros. It cost me $5 to actually do the exchange. From a quiet middle-eastern woman behind bullet-proof glass, I received 30 euros. The exchange rate feels a bit like a scam. On the positive side, I am not going with nothing. Thirty euros will get me at least a stick of deodorant, a few letters to the U.S., toothpaste and toothbrush and maybe a cheap hair dryer. Wow, I love the euro.

I am not looking forward to being shoved in a cramped seat with no leg room. Knowing my luck, I will end up sitting by a huge, smelly guy with acne. Let's hope not. So far, I don't see anyone like that sitting around me at the gate. I hope to sleep the majority of the way. I am already exhausted from traveling all day. I am thankful that AIFS does not have anything planned for me tomorrow in London. I will be allowed to explore the city on my own. My game plan is to meet a couple nice girls in London that will be attending Grenoble with me, and maybe, after a little bit of shut-eye, I can convince them to do a little sightseeing around the city. "...Right-O" (End of Ze World-YouTube).

Two more hours, of waiting to board the plane. (sigh...)