Avez-vous eu une bonne semaine?

Hey I'm back. Sorry it has been almost a week if not longer. So much has happened in this last week that I have been so tired and could not bring my self to blog. Now I have some time and I would like to share with you what I have been up to so here we go. ENJOY!!!!

So did you have a good week? My week was more of a relaxing week. I didn’t really do a whole lot like I did last week.  I went to a friend’s house and stayed the night on Monday and Tuesday. He is really nice and his girlfriend is amazingly kind and pretty. His family is unbelievably kind. His sister Manon is older and really amazing. She helped us make CREPS!!!!!!!!!! We ate crêpes for a snack at four and then for dinner we ate crêpes and for desert guess what more crêpes!!!!  All in all it was a good two days. We also after eating all those crepes we watched the movie room 1408, (for those of you who know me, you know that I don’t watch horror movies and guess what I watched a horror movie) which is about this reporter and how he goes and stays at different hotels that clame to have paranormal activity until he gets a postcard that says check out room 1408 at the dolphin hotel in New York..... Things happen but if you want to find out more watch ROOM 1408.

So on Wednesday went with Lea to meet one of her friends that she hasn’t seen in a while. There were a couple of other girls coming so we were going to meet up and all go at the same time. Well on the way there I don’t know what happened but I ended up falling and scraping my knee really, really badly.  The cut is probably the size of a ping pong ball. It stung so much but I made the best of the situation and I said that the point of this exchange was to experience the culture and every aspect of the French life. So I decided that in order for that to be possible obviously I had to hurt myself, ya probably not my best option but at least I know that the ground is hard and mom and dad I didn’t break the ground that is how I found it, I swear!!! :D

So after my little accident I decided that it would be better if I spent the next day relaxing and trying not to make things worse.  So I spent the day on facebook and reading and various other things that didn’t involve a lot of moving around. Also Anna had some friends over and they were singing so Anna asked me if I would help out their group and sing with them. Anna was playing the piano and one of her friends was playing the guitar and another friend was singing. The song was someone Like you by Adele (if you know me then you know that I love to sing and that I love to sing Adele and that I love to sing her song someone like you).

Thursday night or when I woke up Friday morning I noticed that I had my first dream since I had been in France. I do not quite remember what the dream was about exactly but I remember that it was about EVIAN water and the family was there and get this my dream was in FRENCH. My 1^st dream in France and it happens to be in French. It was strange but cool at the same time! :D

By Friday my knee was feeling better so I had a little adventure with Joel. Lea’s parents are planning on renovating their kitchen so I went with Joel and we went to look at kitchens. The stores were like the Home Depot but all Kitchens. We went to three different stores and I actually understood pretty well everything that was being said between Joel and the person helping us. That is what I did in the morning and in the afternoon Becca, my friends from school (Becca is from the states. She lives in Connecticut) invited me to go to the centre – ville (downtown Poitier) with her and a guy from Turkey and a girl from Italy. Turns out that the guy from Turkey and the girl from Italy couldn’t come so it was just me and Becca and near the end of the afternoon Lea.  She showed us some stores that aren’t really expensive and I bought some more jewellery and a pair of flats to go with my new dress I bought!!  I call it my confetti dress; can you not see that it looks like confetti?????

So Saturday lea was with her boyfriend and Anna was at her friend’s house so it was just me with Cathy and Joel. We watched the sorcerer’s apprentice. It was a really good movie and I understood most of it.

Cathy keeps telling me about how much progress I have been making. So lea suggested that I spend a week where I don’t speak English at all. I have to go on facebook as little as possible and see how much my French improves.  So I have chosen this week starting tomorrow ill next Sunday I’m going to try and speak nothing but French so there will be a delay on the blogging and the communication. Though I would let you all know that so that you didn’t worry. I know you all would, but anyways. 

In summary from my 2 weeks of vacation which now has come to a close, I have been to La Rochelle and seen Canada and the Atlantic Ocean, gone to Futuroscope, had a dinner party with Jennah, Camille, and Camille’s family. Did I tell you about that, we had a dinner party a week ago yesterday and I got to see the other Canadian girl who is here her name is Jennah!! We ate lots of food and played Just dance three on the wii. So much fun that night I went to bed at ohhhh 3 in the morning and got up at noon ya that was a tiring night. Anyway went to one of leas friends’ house for the night hurt myself and relaxed a whole lot. I now start a long 6 week of school then I have another 2 weeks of vacation and then I leave for Canada. Oh ya and in 4 weeks lea goes to Italy for a week.  Hope she has fun!!!

- Nathalie <3

Friday, saturday, sunday, monday, ect.

Where to start,

Oh yes, I know,

FRIDAY:       

    So for me Friday was a long awaited day because that marked two things. ONE, I had been in France at lea’s house for exactly two weeks. TWO, I started two weeks of vacations. (This I really need) That means that Fridays was both a happy day and a sad day, sad because I said goodbye to a friend. Amelie is a friend that I met at school on my first day of school. She was an exchange student here from Germany. Friday was her last time and I had only known her for two weeks.

Saturday: 

   Saturday night was my first French party. Let me tell you it was not what I had expected. I expected, well I don’t know what I expected but it was not what I saw. When Lea told me that I was going to a birthday party for one of her friends I thought ok birthday party. No it was a birthday party with cake and presents and games but the games were alcohol games weird. The party was fun because there was dancing and it was kind of funny watching drunk people dance. In case you are wondering I had one drink at 8:00 when we got there.

Sunday:

    So it was Cathy`s eldest sisters granddaughters birthday. We went to her house. (Cathy is lea`s mom and her sisters name is Lillian) I got to meet pretty well all of Cathy`s family which was nice. She has three sisters a brother but I only bet two sisters her one sister wasn’t there and nether was her brother.

Monday:

    Today was especially interesting because I went to La Rochelle. La Rochelle is a city right on the sea. We had the perfect day. It was sunny and warm and there were clouds but they were scarce and white and fluffy. I spent the day with Dasha and her husband and her son and his family.  Lea had syncro practice, her mom had to work, Anna had basketball and her dad had to work. I spent the morning touring around where Dasha`s son lives. It was so beautiful. Dasha`s granddaughter says that this city is the sleeping city because there are a lot of younger people that live there so they sleep until noon. The only people who are up before noon are the elderly people or people with babies. Though that that was kind of true and funny.I also discovered a new singer her name is Lana Del Rey. Her music sounds kind of strange but I think it sounds interesting.

               

    In the afternoon we went to La Rochelle and saw the sea and toured the city. The thing that I love about France is that you can go anywhere and everything looks the same. It looks old and worn-down, but at the same time it is all very different with a different story to tell. You see history and I love that about France and about Europe.

Tuesday:

    After all the partying and traveling I had been doing in t he last three days I had to do nothing, so I stayed at home with Cathy and Anna and I helped Cathy do some house work. Then we played a game called mastermind. This game is so fun.

Wednesday:

    FUTUROSCOPE! The Futuroscope is an amusement park that has a lot of things to do with the future if you didn`t get that from the name of the park. I went with Lea, Camille, Anna, Beggie (he is from Iceland) romain and Jennah. We spent the entire day there and it was so cool. There were robots and people dressed up in costumes and said that they were from another planet. For me to describe the place does not do it justice. You will just have to hop on a plane to Paris then take a train to the Futuroscope and see it for yourself, or if that is not an option then here are some of my favourite pictures of the place.

Pass by in a flash

So this week has passed in a flash. I have gone to school, made lots of new friends, played later game, and am continually socking in all the French I can. I have already said everything that I believe that you all would want to know. Then something happened this weekend.

 We had an AFS weekend. AFS is an organization that helps people who want to go on exchanges. So this was like a check in weekend with everyone in my area that are on exchanges. So we stayed up dancing and partying till 2:00 in the morning. Then went to bed a half an hour later. We were then woken up by a siren that was played at 7:30 in the morning, and then the organizer of this weekend decided to sing to these songs really loud and blast the music down the hallway till everyone got up. The volunteers even began to pound on the doors to the beat of the music. It was a terrible way to be woken up and so I am running on probably at least 5 hours sleep if not less. 

Other than that unfortunate 45 minutes the rest of the weekend was amazing. I made lots of new friends from around the world. This weekend was so much fun.So I have one more week of school then I am off for 15 days. Cannot wait!!! :D

Jumbled Minds and Deep thoughts :S

I just want to say a Happy late valentines day to everyone. 


So since so manythings have happened to me since my last post I will be saying alot. I may jump from one topic to the next and I apologize in advance for that.I have so much to tell you all that in my head my thoughts aren't clear and clearly I have not thought things out. So without ferther or do:


So things in France have been fast paced but I Love it <3. eventhoug i do nut completly understand everyhting I am understanding more and more everydya. With that i'm also meeting lots of new friends. I have become friends with lots of French people but as well an american and a german, who in the few shorut days that i have known them I have come to love them. I have always wanted to travel the world and now i get to! I have seen:

France from above

 The Eiffel Tower

 l'arc de triomphe

For the people who don't know that I have to go to school well I do but the amazing thing is that On wednesdays I, well the school ends at noon, so after school at 14h30 I went to play laser game. For the people who dont know what that is like I didn't it just means lazer tag. it was amazing, but I though that since I was in France that I would be way better than when I was in canada! :D Well that was not the case I think that I was actually worse if that is even possible.

I can not believe how amazing everyting is. I look out a window and I see a castle, I can see all this history around me and I am in a way part of the history of france for many years to come, a minor part but I am a part if it and that gives a person something to think about for a while.

Woah that was deep. My youth leader Andrew is always asking us for a deep though or to tell the youth group on wednesday night, so that would be tonight, if you have had a deep thought latley. Well andrew here is your answer from me all the way from France, Latley i have been having may deep thoughs. Not like anything that I would consider mind blowing but still deep.

 à bientôt 

Home away from Home

So manay things go through my mind as i was leaving for france. The one thing that i keep thinking of the that book by Dr. Sessu. many of you may know this book called "Oh the places you'll go". the first few pages keep playing in my head as I leave for the air port.

"Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own.  And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go."

So with my adventure jsut at the beginning, and having know way to tell what is going to be in store for me, well that just makes things all the more worth while. 

It's funny. as i sit here at this strange desk, in this strange house, in this strange village, in this strange country i have to say that yes i am home sick. That is to expected, but i have this satisfaction that i am here and i am doing this. I feel like an introudor but like a member of the family all at the same time. I know a couple person who said that this the best thing that i could ever do. That I come back a changed person and that home is only a FACEBOOK message away. Who would have though that in this day and age that we could communicate this easy with people that are miles away.

Thank you to all of the people that encouraged me along the way I do not think that I could thank you enough! :D

Miss you all  

metting new people

There is one thing that always makes me nervious and that is meeting new people. The one thing that can taraize me is not knowing whether or not they will like you. Not knowing what they are thinking or even worse what they think of you.

For me one thing has change and would be the fact that even though you are terified about what that other person might be thinking, what we might not realised about that other person is that they are thinking the same thing about us. Will they like me

Will they or are they nice people.

Some people are so afraid of what other people might think that they forget that the other pperson is thinking the same thing.

This thought came into my mind today when I went to pick up my exchange student from France. Her name is lea and she will be staying with me for the next three months. She is this amazing person and so far everyone who met her has loved her. I am so glad that she has come to stay with me and i can't think of a better way to start of my grade 11 year than to have this amazing person.

My next fear is haveing to go over to france for three months and be by myself. I will then know what Lea must be feeling.

With that not I am going to say goodbye but this is not the last post but only the first of many!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There will be a time when I will be having the most fun in all my life and that will be in 25 days. What happens in 25 days you might ask, well i have an exchange student that is coming to live with me for three months and I can't wait!!!


Her name is Lea and she well pretty well exactly like me!


Our birthdays are two weeks apart and we both have sisters that are the same age. 


I didn't really now what I would be getting myself into but it is amazing so far.  


We have been talking on Facebook and emailing like crazy since the end of May beginning of June. The things tha have learned about eachother is amazing. we are so much alike that you wouldn't believe it.


I hope that as these last 25 days before lea comes goes by so quick. I hope that in the end we become great friends. 


The people that matched us up have done an increadible job and i can't wait for my adventure into France and see what it was like for Lea to come to a country were she doesn't know anyone and she how amazing things will be.


When the time comes i will tell you all amazing stories that happend and of all the amazing places thati will and have visited along the way whether it be here in canada with lea or when i venture of to France. Either way it will be as i have said many time already ...............AMAZING!!!!