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UPDATE::  I am not dead and I have not lost anything too important (I did lose one of my sketchbooks though. 5 years of sketches ... it is hurting me a little but is not life threatening).  I am slowly getting accustomed to the fact that a random 61 year old woman washes my underwear once a week. I think people still think it's weird when I do the Rubiks Cube on the bus but I stopped caring long ago.

ANECDOTE:: Last night I was at a "pre-fete" with some french university peeps and all of a sudden everyone started singing along to "Hit The Road Jack" like it was the next Carly Rae Jensen song. One of the more heartwarming/hilarious things I've experienced since i've been here, especially when they got to the verse after the chorus and everyone started going "LALLALALALALALALLALALALAL ALALALALALLALALALLA" because they didnt know the english words. Christ I hope I'm that adorable when do i foreign things..



So to receive credit I have to translate all my course syllabi into English and send them to Tufts. This is what ive come up with so far for my "Sociologie d'aesthetique" class. It is probably the least legitimate sounding thing ever I think Susan Ostrander eyebrows might rise and rise and then straight up leave her face.

(keep in mind this is for the class where the prof is legitimately half-clown half-awkard nerd. He's the man. Coincidentally, his last name is Lehmann. Yes Im serious)

Classes 6,7: Showing your body at the beach. Have we always gone to the beach? Since when? Showing your body when you are a farmer as opposed to showing your body when you are a woman - to be bare breasted? 

2 class periods, 4 hours.This is literally a word for word translation I am not making it up. How this relates to aestheticism, i have yet to determine. I'm sure Lehmann will be able to enlighten me and also maybe do a weird dance which he does atleast once a class period. 

However, I can say it relates to France pretty well because I have seen at least 4 seins nus (boobies) since Ive been here (not mine). Dont worry they were all at the beach at Vannes that first  weekend. I have not been frequenting strip clubs. En fait; they probably dont exist because all you really need to do is just go to a beach. 

BISES TA TA FOR NOW :)

10

this weekend there was a chateau

a vineyard






and some cool arts

9

I had my first university experience yesterday morning. arrived to class 35 minutes early because i was afraid i would be late. i managed to find my classroom (amphitheatre 3) even though upon walking into the building the first signage i saw for AMPHI 3 showed an arrow pointing directly towards the exit. hmmm.

voici le "social science" building. giant. 

you can't trick meeee fac. I would say my experience was not altogether regular because there were only 20 ish kids in the class instead of 900. probably because it is a "license 3" class so all the idiots have been weeded out, presumably. however it was also regular in the sense that halfway through a student up and walked out and all the prof did was shake her head and laugh. "au revoir!"

My prof in the class I had this morning is a real goofy guy. he made a lot of jokes I didn't understand but laughed at anyways so that I wouldn't look like a deaf mute. All in all the classes were not so terrifying, so that is tres bon!

8

what i am doing this weekend:

 Festival Scopitone

7

voici les photos les plus belles that I have taken of Nantes

6

Just had an epic failure trying to go to my SUAPS (intramural) footie pickup game. (Footie = soccer, please try to keep up with how european I am. Sorry I know it's hard). I had lost the sheet telling me where it was (surprising), so I looked it up online. The University website directed me to some random aerodome place (i.e. small airport). When I got there an hour later, cleats dangling innocently from my backpack, SURPRISE there was no field.  I asked directions from some nice garcons and they told me to go 50 minutes in the other direction. They also told me the word I used for field actually means "cow pasture" and not "soccer field" (classic example of how french people have far too many words)
"Can you run?"
"Non"
"You will be en retard" (they were not calling me a retard. en retard means late.)

Soooo i reboarded bus 72 for the scenic hour long trip back to my apartment. lovely voyage !! i am seeing so much of the french countryside and the highway system. lesson learned: do not trust information from the university because they are purposefully trying to screw you over.  i heard from some university students that we should check the boards next to our departments because sometimes they will randomly change the time of a class for no reason other than they are trying to confuse you and make you want to drop out so that the prof will not have to deal with an 800 person class.


MERCI BEAUCOUP. in reality though i am not that sad because the kid I talked to knew about IES and came to the conversation club all last year. This was our parting conversation it went great

"ajadlkcjlakejalkjglkjac" this is him asking for my name in a very fast and complicated way.
"Uhhh.. it's called the conversation club"
"No, I asked you what your name is."
"Oh oui. Moi, c'est emma" (translation: Me, it is Emma) superbe. making friends all around, especially with those who enjoy people who speak like Tarzan.


stay tuned !!!!! i will do many more awkward and embarrassing things before I leave, je suis certaine

5

Um so I have been tres lazy with these posts. But let's see lots has happened. These are the things I have done/seen/learned in the last few days. I will do a list form because.. it is easier than making sentences (I do not make many sentences in English these days so you will have to give me a petit break)

• abolition of slavery memorial
• printing museum
• planetarium (a l'oeil= at eye = for free)
• if you wanted to know, the word for supernova in French is the same as in English. has been very helpful knowledge for me thus far. 
• a man blowing fire at a jeune fille. don't worry she survived. 
• tried to pick classes. didn't really work because the European system is wack and chaotic
• played frisbee with some French boyzz. literally only two French boys because people don't play frisbee in Europe pretty much ever
• successfully "faire la bise" without spazzing out. "faire la bise" = kissing strangers you meet on their cheeks instead of just saying hi/shaking hands/awkwardly waving
• received awkward looks for wearing shorts while jogging. apparently this is a weird thing to do
• received awkward looks for smiling too much at strangers. I must work on my chilly French demeanor
• received many blank stares. "euuhh vut ees eet that you are atryinguh to sayyee?"
• a Francaise singing BB King 
• had a picnic next to a castle. casual. 
• actually it wasn't really that casual we were way too excited. there was a group high-five
• the french word for tipsy is joyeux
• became joyeux entirely too early this saturday. typical americaine move. but it was vaut la peine (= worth it)
• the french use the same word for the little plate that goes under a cup of coffee and for the rings around a planet. because cafe is that important, bien sur.
• the word merde (shit) was invented by a man from Nantes
• yep.
• I myself have also invented a lot of words since I've been here. but none of them have been picked up by the rest of the frenchies unfortunately. 
• ate a kebab it was awesome
• got into the highest level french class ! 
• this means I have to choose between having a 9am grammar class or having Fridays off
• difficile... 
• two expressions for hangover: geule de bois = mouth of wood. mal a la cheveux = bad hair
• took the night bus and did not see Harry Potter
• planning a trip to Oktoberfest
• became not sick anymore!

Okay I think that is just about it. I will post pictures of Nantes soon. I went on an epic journey around the ville taking pictures of pretty much everything. But there is still more. I enjoy pictures more than words so expect lots more pictures aussitot!

BISESSSSS

4

Yees so here are some pictures of la maison. I gotta go around and take pictures of all the weird shit she has. But I haven't done that yet. Just for now this is all choses normales. 

 Ma chambre

view from back porch (from my room).. pas mal

 kitchen.. tres petite!!

 le living room.. kind of swank n'est-ce pas

 view from front porch. marie-annick aime les plants beaucoup

le piano. we haven't done any duets yet but i'm sure this will happen aussitot

That's pretty much it ! We are on the third floor. There's a 96 year old who lives under so I have to be tres quiet at night. Oh yeah I forgot to mention.. Marie-Annick wears a fanny pack (she rocks it. if you were wondering). She also plays video games and owns every pixar movie ever made. She's the best ever.

3

Right! So I have been in Bretagne for the past few days for un petit vacances. (Yes the French do vacation a lot more often.. we took one test and then left immediately for a beach weekend). Here's a picture of me on a giant bouee!

Anyways yes it was supposed to be a bonding experience for all the kids on the program. Which it was. I have beaucoup des amis now. Like this guy ! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

But in all seriousness everyone is really nice. The staff at IES (5 people) is all really nice as well. There are 50 kids on the program. We all try to speak French to each other mostly. Maybe more Franglais then French but we are trying at least. 

Anyways Bretange is vraiment beautiful. Must change my life plans if I am to move here eventually. Art teacher salary will never do the trick. Quelque photos.. 

Et donc.. It is too hard to add many pictures in one post so I will do another one later with pictures of la maison. C'est tout for now .. must go to sleep. I still haven't gotten over my cold if anyone is wondering. C'est difficile to learn French when I am coughing my brains out. Ah bon. more to come, a bientot!

2

My spotify ads are now en francais. I guess this means I am truly assimilated  ?

1

ahhhh salut! Im here. First off look what I can do with these weird keyboards

éé!:!§§µµµùµù££^^¨+°°°°àççééé²²²§§§é駧//

also I havent found the apostrophe key yet so bear with me.

So, miraculously all the traveling was parfait. There was a little delay coming from Iceland because of a volcano (?). I couldnt quite understand the pilots accent but I assume volcano eruptions are something that happens casually in Iceland.. not really sure. Cutest airport ever though, by the way. And other Emma was right when she said there were many beautiful people. I kind of wanted to get off and go live on a glacier/under a waterfall or go chill with Björk.

Alas, many trains and many strangers helping me with mes baggages later and I am here. Nantes is beautiful. Im sure youd rather see pictures than hear me attempt to describe it but I havent taken any yet so you will have to wait.

Marie-Annick is officially the best ever. She delivered me to the center this morning on a scooter. Her apartment is full of colorful things, strange artworks and books about things like "Les triomphes de Jazz". Her laundry hamper is an elephant. She wears weird scarves and has a wall of all the pamphlets from all the art exhibits shes ever been to, and she has a record player. Basically I expect to become bffls toute de suite.

Anyways, pictures later byebyeeee