I've finally figured out how to not miss Clermont-Ferrand. Fortunately I've been blessed enough to be able to see my friends who have already graduated and my boyfriend a lot recently (who just turned the big 3-0!) and have gotten back into the swing of things.
It's slightly depressing to not be in France though I've recently discovered some macarons at Auburn's local Earth Fare store. Though slightly expensive, they are extremely delicious.
Our football season has been very, very depressing. We have won only one game and lost four. Just two seasons after our National Championship season, our football team is struggling with a new recruiting class and a new defensive and offensive coach.
Entrance of the football team
James & I outside the engineering building
tailgating for a game!
My little sister & I before a football game
my sorority sister Anne & I!
But tailgating before the game has been super fun! For Mathieu et Mylene, tailgating is basically when you hang out with friends before and after a game to get excited. Mainly the excuse is to see people and drink and eat.
Tailgating with Ginny in Atlanta, GA
tailgating with Ginny in Auburn, AL
My best friend Kayla came to visit me this past weekend, and we had a great time - we went to the Auburn vs. Arkansas football game (where Auburn lost, unfortunately) and we went to see Luke Bryan in concert Friday night whose video is so prominently featured above. We also went to see a movie called "Pitch Perfect" about an all-girls singing group at a university -- this movie is freaking hilarious.
Before the Luke Bryan concert
sunset before the Luke Bryan concert
Megan, my girlfriend in Clermont, has her last day of work at Michelin on Friday. I am astonished at how fast the time has flown, I cannot believe it is already October of 2012.
I have been super busy lately -- my sorority sister Rachel came to visit Clermont with her boyfriend Julien the weekend after Valentine's Day. It was so good to see them -- I definitely missed having some friends around me during my weekend!!
We went shopping at Centre Jaude and ate croissants in the mall. After we went shopping, we tried to go to Puy-de-Dome, the big mountain/volcano in my town. The drive wasn't too long, and Rachel & I chatted the whole time.
Hang gliders at Puy de Dome
When we got to the top, there wasn't any space for parking, but I did take some pictures of hang gliders. We stopped at a random spot on the side of the road to take pictures, and then we stopped again at an overpass and took photos.
Quaint little road
Clermont Ferrand from above
The big Cathedral!
Clermont, surrounded by mountains
After Rachel and Julien left, I had the Sunday to myself and went about my week.
For Mardi Gras, Megan & Allie invited me to their apartment to have dinner. I met Allie & Megan at the grocery store a few weeks before, and I exchanged numbers with them. They were going to Bordeaux, and promised to get in touch with me when they returned. We had enchiladas and king's cake for dinner, and it was delicious. I met their roommates, Thad & Peter, who I thought would be girls -- whoops. Apparently there are 7 of them total in the program from USC, and they are others of them in different countries.
That Friday night, we went out to dinner at L'Arbre a Vin and I had escargot and duck for the first time. It was delicious. I met Deanna, another student, and since Peter was six, Thad took the four of us girls out to dinner. I had such a good time with them, they are very nice and fun people, they always keep me laughing! They are also filling me in on what they learn in class, and I am learning new verbs and French ways. They taught me the correct way to order in French and I definitely used that in Paris. After dinner, we dropped Deanna off at her apartment and went to the Gossip Lounge, a bar next to their apartment, and had a few drinks.
The next day, Saturday, we met up again at Place de la Victoire, next to the cathedral, and had a few drinks. We then went to another restaurant and had appetizers : two flatbreads and a charcuterie and cheese plate. It was DELICIOUS. I decided that I only like Cantal type cheeses... the other one's are just slightly decent in my opinion.
After that, Allie, Megan & I went shopping at some places - I bought some new clothes for Paris and a super cute dress for a date with James when he comes in May.
After shopping, we met up with the boys at an australian bar, drank again, had dinner at a restaurant, and then I went home... too much food, too much alcohol, not enough sleep.
This past weekend, I went to Paris!!!
l'Arc de Triomphe
I finally got to see Kayla last weekend in Paris... we did SO many things!! Champs Elysee, l'Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, and we went on a night dinner cruise ship and it was WONDERFUL!!! The meal was delicious and we had great wine and great service... it was a wonderful last evening in Paris!
Saturday night I spent time with Allie, Megan & Deanna, and met Audrey and Cecilia, Megan's French friends from her second time in France. We had raqluette, a type of cheese fondue, and afterwards we went out to a bar! It was a wonderful girl's night out and I hope to do it again soon!!
Mom was right, today I smiled and I met two girls from the University of South Carolina grad school who are studying abroad in Clermont right now! They live near my apartment with two other USC students... I'm so excited to have the opportunity to hang out with some SEC students!
This past weekend, I went to Lyon for two days. And ohmyLANTA it was freezing. I had a wonderful time exploring the Presqu'ile (peninsula where all the museums, etc are) on my own.
I took the train there, and thanks to my new couple friends Mathieu and Mylene, I went to the right train station. Guys, I literally would not have made it if they had not said something. I was going to take the tram to the "Part Dieu Gare" stop... since it has the word "train station" in it, I believed it was the train station. Oh no, it was not. The real train station is a mere 5-10 minute walk from my apartment, away from Place Delille.
I had dinner with Mathieu and Mylene last Friday night, and I have found my new couple! I'm almost always the third wheel in my life... Sydney & Chandler, Kelsey & Daniel... and now, I have found my French couple! It's not that I don't like being friends with single people... It's just that all of my really good friends usually have boyfriends... James has been making fun of me about it though (love you too), he laughs about how I always tend to make friends with couples. Oh well. It definitely stinks not having James with me to go out to dinner, he's such a good dinner-mate! And as of yet, I have not eaten alone at a restaurant but once since I have been in France.
I immediately descended from the train and tried to find somewhere to eat. Easier said than done. France is known for closing everything down during lunch time so that people can eat with their families. Only problem is, I don't have a family or a home in Lyon. I walked into the nearest open "bouchon", a Lyon style restaurant, and decided to figure out what to do next. After my espresso, I went to pay. OH wait, they don't accept visa's for less than 10 euros. Thankfully, they were serving lunch soon so the host, who I think was about to beat me, didn't have to have me arrested. Whew.
Statue in front of the restaurant
Lunch was delicious. I mean, you would kill your grandmother for this meal delicious.
Flan de poireaux a la tomate
Le pate avec le saumon
After lunch, I went off and checked in early to my hotel room! It was tiny, on the top floor, the elevator wasn't working, and it didn't have any real sheets to go under. The comforter was teeny tiny.... And the "top sheet" was the only thing in between the mattress pad and the comforter. Oh well!
Then, I went exploring!
Statue of Louis 14 in Place Bellecour
Ferris Wheel in Place Bellecour
View of Fourviere from Place Bellecour
My first stop was Place Bellecour to buy a Lyon City Pass that got me into museums and let me use the public transportation for free! Place Bellecour is huge, and is near a ton of fancy shops that are on these pedestrian only streets. Additionally, it's possible to view Basilisque de Fourviere from the square... This church isn't even on the Presqu'ile. It's on a huge hill, across the river Saone.
After that I walked around for a while with my trusty guide book trying to figure out what I wanted to do. I eventually ended up in Place des Terreaux, a square in front of the Musee de Beaux Arts (art museum in Lyon) and Hotel de Ville. This fountain, by Bartholdi, is made entirely of LEAD and was originally meant for Bordeaux, but ended up in Lyon. The four horses on the fountain symbolize rivers flowing to the ocean.
A fountain in Place des Terreaux (frozen)
I went to the museum and had a fabulous time. I love museums. Not modern art, I don't get lines drawn on paintings. If I feel like I can paint it, it's not beautiful enough. My eyes were blown away.
I feel like I could spend hours here. There was one room (below) with only huge biblical themed paintings from the 1600's from French & Lyonnais painters... There were at least 6 paintings.
huge room of HUGE paintings
Danseurs sur la scene - Degas
I am a huge fan of Monet, Manet, Degas, etc... and I was so happy to see some of their paintings at this museum.
Le Printemps -- Monet
Fourviere
This HUGE basilica is located on a hill on the other side of the river Saone. Because it is so high up, when I went the wind literally almost knocked me down. I could barely see, so I didn't really stick around long to search around the church down to where this woman's house was... or the museum. But I was there long enough to see the beautiful view from the side of the church
Beautiful view of Lyon
After that, I rode these things called the fununculaires back to the tram station, where I got on the tram to Place Bellecour, where I changed subway trains to go to Lyon-Perrache, the stop in front of my hotel, and the train station. As best as I can describe it, a fununculaire reminded me of a miner's car and a roller coaster at the beginning, when you're going up Splash Mountain and you are inside the mountain...
used for pulling the fununculaire
the fununculaire.
I had a horrid, horrid headache, and the receptionist man gave me something to take, and I slept for 14 hours.
Sunday morning, I got up and had my 8 euro breakfast (it was delicious, I made sure to eat a ton of food too) and I went off exploring! I first went to the Musee des Tissus et arts decoratifs (I think)... it was beautiful. The Decorative Arts section had all these rooms with furniture from the 1700's and 1600's, and I really felt like I was in a castle. It was beautiful, I got a feeling for how small and ornate everything was in that time frame. They also had china from the same era as well as "modern" china, which included a piece from Salvador Dali (my mother and father LOVE him). I took a break for a while to try and find the Printing Museum before it closed, but I failed miserably. Instead, I found the Church of Saint Bonaventure. And I went to the 11:30 AM service.
Church of Saint - Bonaventure
Plaque dedicating the building
The only problem was, I'm not Catholic. Even in French, I can't understand a Catholic church service. The church was beautiful and large, and I was just happy to sit and be surrounded by followers of Christ. I prayed for the most I had in a few weeks, and was overcome with happiness and peace with myself and my actions. God gave me patience and courage that day.
I returned to the museum after the church service to go to the other side... the only problem was, I was the only one there. I hate being alone in museums, it freaks me out. Reminds me of scary movies or stories... whatever. Also, they were doing this huge exposition on the Virgin Mary and how the statues of the Virgin Mary wore clothes during a period of time, as dictated by the pope.
I have an unnatural fear of mannequins. I hate that they look real. They scare me. Add that to being the only one in a creaky, kinda dark, museum, and I LITERALLY bolted out of there.
I went to Starbucks before going back to the train and got a White Chocolate Mocha... so delicious. And a sandwich. With fish on it. That I took on the train accidentally. That made the whole train smell nasty.
Whoops.
I'm super excited for this weekend, as Saturday is my ONE MONTH anniversary in France and Mylene and Mathieu have invited me to their apartment for dinner and ... wait for it... GUITAR HERO. I am currently thinking fondly of my senior year in high school and eXtreme...
James Taylor is quite possibly one of my favorite musicians. His voice is unique -- no one can exactly replicate his voice. It's like silk or cashmere.
It is hard to make friends here. I know, Mom, you don't believe it... You keep telling me to smile at people and they will either be intrigued and want to be my friend or be scared and run away.
I love you Momma, but I gotta tell ya, it's harder than it seems. I smile a lot, even when I miss my friends back at Auburn or in Charlotte, and my "special friend" James in Dothan (thanks Dad...). It doesn't seem to work very well.
Fall 2010
Kelsey & I ; Summer 2011
Kelsey & I: Fall 2011
Bid Day 2011
Bid Day 2011
Sydney & I : Fall 2011
I think about how hard it was to make friends at Auburn outside of Sydney and my sorority sisters. I know a lot of people don't understand why you "pay" for friends -- but it's a club. And for better or for worse, you are with your sorority until the day you are just a memory to your loved ones. It hurts my feelings when people say hurtful things about sororities; it's ok that you don't like them, they're not for everyone. Just like not everyone wants to be a dancer or a gymnast or a cheerleader or an actor. It's a choice one makes to enter a sorority & it's a mutual choice upon the actual sorority in the end.
I tried to explain sororities to my co-workers the other day, and I couldn't. I couldn't explain how 200 girls can bond over something so obscure and abstract; that even when there is trouble in paradise, outside the chapter doors we stand up for each other, no matter what. It is one of those places where going to meetings is like going home -- you are welcome. Maybe Kelsey would have a better explanation.
My explanation doesn't even begin to do Kappa Kappa Gamma justice. Or Smores for that matter... Maybe I'm not good at explanations.
Jordan & Brooke
After I met Jordan & Brooke in class, it's been the 3 girls ever since. Studying, doing homework together, etc. I have never been truly lonely in Auburn, and I'm sad that places like Auburn don't exist everywhere. But, Auburn is a truly special place, with a wonderful and open vibe. I believe it is unable to be replicated.
I remember how when I was first at US4, I didn't really have many friends. In fact, I kinda only had one, and that was short-lived as he never returned my phone calls or wanted to hang out...
James & I
After I "tricked" James into going out to dinner with me, I always had someone to talk to, someone to see new movies with and try food with. I had a friend and someone that was always up for froyo after date nights. He lets me punch him in the arm when I think something is hilarious in the movies but I can't laugh because nobody else is laughing... (thanks J)
So, as hard as it is to believe, although Clermont is beautiful and full of people which I'm sure are beyond nice, nobody is ready to open up and invite me into their lives. And I understand; I'm leaving soon. I just really want someone to go to dinner with, go shopping with, and someone to talk to when I miss my loved ones in the US & I can't talk to them.
I started this off wanting to talk about snow and the 3 hour long meeting that I went to today... But I just can't do it.
I'm gone to Carolina in my mind.
Charlotte, NC (towerls.com)
Blue Ridge Parkway - Grandfather Mountain, NC : Photo of Dalei Liang (2008)
Price Lake, Grandfather Mountain (NC): Photo of Dalei Liang 2008
(I know, it's Miley Cyrus... but still. Close your eyes.)
Kimmy Webster tweeted this youtube link the other day, and I have fallen in love with the song. My father & I are both fond of the dobro, he wants to learn how to play it, I think it's wicked cool. The dobro is a guitar that you lay flat on your lap to play & use a slide on your finger.
Now, it has been a while since I have "blogged", but I am definitely keeping up with my journal for Mme Spencer! Since that is in French, it's harder to translate it. So, I'll give you a synthese of my time here.
Michelin Headquarters : the Greenhouse
Michelin : La Combaude
The food in the cafeteria is delicious. Kate, delicious? IT'S CAFETERIA FOOD! Au contraire, mes amis.... This is no ordinary cafeteria. Oh no. This, is a 4 star restaurant.
Every day (EVERY DAY) they have a different meal to choose from -- usually it's fish and pizza, which they make fresh for you, or it's fish and some other dish.
Since I have arrived at work I have had:
Salmon ,trout, risotto, some weird fish that is similar to a sting ray but not a sting ray (not happy I ate that), & fish prepared in the Chinese style... With this entree, you also get two sides. Vegetables or whatever you want. Or you can just have one side.
One day, I mistook brussel sprouts for broccoli. I ate them anyway, and was slightly surprised. I will not eat them again.
And, ON TOP OF THAT, you get a baguette. Fo free.
There are all these other crazy things you can have -- some weird cheeses (have not tried), some appetizers (some of them look like cat food, others are deviled eggs), and desserts.
Then the nice cashier lady tells you it's 5 euros. Or less. And you look at her in shock, then at your plate, then back at her to see if she is joking. She is not.
It is so serene and picturesque here. The mountains are everywhere, and I am blown away by their sheer beauty as they look down over the town and stand almost in between it and the outside world. God worked overtime when he created these volcanoes and this sleepy little town.
They are hard working in this town to develop it even more. It is not only the international headquarters for Michelin but also the site of 4 (if I recall correctly) Michelin facilities. WOW. It had 6 at one point in time...
Today, I went to this place called E-Leclerc, a type of supermarche or hypermarche, and finally found the hairdryer I have been searching for. I forgot last weekend to buy one, and felt so idiotic the next day!!
Think of Sam's or Costco's. Then double the store space and it's inventory. Then you kind of have a glimpse of what E-Leclerc is.
I also bought a hair straightener (THANK YOU JESUS!), nail polish remover, some other necessities such as a non-travel toothbrush, and a sim card. I know have a French cell phone number.
I was extremely interested in a type of offer given by Virgin mobile, but I had to have some sort of address verification. Like a gas bill. Or electricity or water bill. Well, seeing as how I don't pay bills, that wasn't working.
So, instead of paying 16 euros, I ended up paying 30 for my texts/ etc. And 15 for the number and sim card. However, now I know that if I ever get some sort of document that proves I live where I live, I can get what I want for cheaper!!
I unlocked my Verizon Blackberry this morning and am SO thankful that I could do that.
I want to go back to this magical spot, but it's a good 20 minute tram ride from Place Delille...The plus side is that it is extremely close to the stop, which is nice when it's raining.
Why don't the French provide bags for their customers? It is annoying me. Thankfully, I had the foresight to bring my new Longchamp so I managed to fit everything with just carrying my hair dryer!
I love Beyonce. And this morning, I walked to the tram (about 10 minutes or less, depending on lights) to this song. A good start to the day. The sun does not rise in Clermont or in France until at least 8:30 AM. Therefore, it was a mild 32 degrees Fahrenheit this morning... My co-workers kept speaking to me in Celsius while they were telling me that this is a warm winter. Usually it's -2 C or -10... AH! No thank you.
I met a co-worker at the tram station this morning who showed me how to work the ticket machine... You can buy 10 one-way tickets for 11.60 Euros. That should last me a little while... AKA 3 days!
The walk from the tram to work takes approximately 10 minutes. I will have to walk it alone tomorrow, and hopefully I remember to cross in front of the pharmacy and walk until I get to the circle and then go to the second street.......... I fear I am already lost!
After touring the plant at work, I was given my first "study" of the internship! I start Monday, so I am going to read up on the literature tomorrow at work.
my bare desk
After work, my mentor Michael took me to the bank, where I got my carte de banque (debit card) and tons of info! We then went to my apartment where he showed me how to turn on my heat... whoops!
Then, I headed to the grocery store. It is called "Carrefour" and a popular chain in France. It is similar to HT or Kroger, and at the bigger stores, they carry hair dryers. Unfortunately, this one just has food, which is fine because I needed it!! I had to pay .10 euros for a plastic-ish bag, which is just fine, because otherwise I would have dropped everything on my walk home.
The groceries!
After making dinner, I got to Skype with Sydney and my mother! What a treat!!! I have made a plan for the weekend -- I am in search of a hair dryer!!
Auburn Woman living in France!
"Even after all this time the sun never said to the earth, "You owe me." Look what happens with a love like that, it lights the whole sky." -Hafiz
