The rest of week 1

January 7-11



On Wednesday I slept in then I had to go to register for my classes at about 2. I ended up meeting some girls on the way there - and we knew it was to be in room 270. So we headed to the second floor (which is really the third because the first floor is like zero). Well we couldn't find it anywhere. The numbers on the rooms went from 264 then skipped up to 284. Well a group of us ended up there lost together. Little did I know this foreshadowing for what the rest of the semester is going to be like. Anyways, we had to ask for directions and we found it after about 15 minutes of searching the building. When we went in, the lady who runs the stuff just handed us a piece of paper that had some boxes/time slots on it and said "The classes are on the walls." And that's all of the instruction we were given. There were groups of papers hung on the walls with class schedules on them. Everyone was freeking out because no one had any idea what to do or how to read the papers. I'm a pretty bright person and it took me atleast 30 minutes to figure out what was even going on.



So this is the deal - classes are given once a week and they can be from 1-3 hours long. I have mostly classes in French, one in English (just because I needed one more class), and one in Spanish (which I can't wait for). BUT, the teachers can change the classroom we are in every class. Everyday before class you have to go to these boards they have posted in the hallway and check to see if your class was moved. If it was, you have to find it. If you miss it, too bad. It's SO stressful. Also, they do not give out a syllabus like in the U.S. I still don't know how to know what books I need for the class.



So getting my registering done felt good, even though I ended up changing a few classes later. On Thursday, we had orientation. It was simply a series of presentations about services on campus and stuff. It was boring and long, BUT I met some more people there. That night, I went to the supermarket with some friends and we went to one of the girl's apartments and made pasta for all of us. It was fun! My best friend I've met here is Lauren - she goes to NC State. Through her, I met another girl from that school named Kayla. The three of us spend a lot of time together. The other group I'm with often is a group of 4 from West Point, Grant, Corinne, Casey, and Eugene. They are very nice as well.

I slept in on Friday morning, and then Lauren and I walked up town to buy cell phones. You can buy a phone for about 19 Euros and then it's a pay-as-you-go kinda deal. You have to buy these little cards that have minutes on them...and the minutes go FAST. Anyhow, at the store (called Orange) we had a guy that spoke English so it was pretty well. He really liked us and kept flirting with us...well, more flirting with Lauren. She's super cute and tiny! But during the whole process, just about everyone who worked in the store wanted to talk to us because we were American. Some tried their English with us while others laughed at our French in a teasing way. When we were checking out, the whole group was around us talking about us in French and laughing. Lauren and I had no idea what they were saying, but I really don't think they were being mean. Haha, they did tell me though that I look like Sarah Palin. NOT TRUE! Haha. After that, we went to a small cafe across the street and got a hot chocolate and a sandwich. We stayed there a while people watching trying to get our bearings to go back out into the cold. Later that night, we went to a bar called Pirates. They played country music the whole night and I loved it! Most of us sang along to ever song and the bar tender who was choosing the music loved it.

On Saturday, Lauren, Kayla, and I went to a mall on the other side of town called Euralille. I'm not sure why, but all of the shops here are having these ridiculous sales. Needless to say the mall was PACKED. You could literally barely walk around in the stores - and being that I'm not much of a shopper I was ready to leave as soon as we got there. The only thing I bought was a sweater but Lauren and Kayla bought a lot more. After our all day mall excursion, we went out to eat at a small Italian restaurant (well actually all of the restaurants are relatively small...I have yet to see something the size of a Applebee's or Eat n' Park). Then, we went to a bar called the Latina Cafe. I was ready to drag my friends there but they actually came willingly! It was definetely a place I will go back to. I felt like I was back in Ecuador and it was so much fun. They played Latin music all night and there were even a few good Latin dancers. I tried to teach my friends how to dance to that kind of music and they did pretty well for their first time! I met a guy from Peru and we danced for a while. It was a really good time! PLUS I got to practice my Spanish, French, and English...sometimes all in the same sentence haha. But he understood what I was saying.

On Sunday, Lauren and I went to this outdoor market where they sell EVERYTHING. And they have really really good fresh foods like meat, bread, veggies, and fruits. Lauren and I bought some awesome Clementines and a couple baguettes that we ate that night with dinner. It was a little overwhelming for the first time...but next time I'll be more prepared to buy more things. The rest of Sunday I just hung out in my room and relaxed since I had been running around so much the entire week.

Plus I had to be rested up for classes the next day.