I'm now in my second week of classes and so far really enjoying them. They are much more independent and there are definitely less small assignments to turn in here. The professors are very nice but also less likely to come to you/ask if you need help as much as the professors back in the states. The University of Nantes is a very nice campus not far from my house. I really like the feel of it. It's not only in a new country, but it is also just a much bigger school than Lutehr. I'm taking French Grammar and Composition, French Writers and Foreign Nations (19th and 20th century,) Translation (at the University,) a teaching internship and a theatrical production. I also tried out a few History lecture courses at he University but happened to be in the ones with the professors who spoke extremely fast so I decided not to keep them in my schedule. Also, the teaching internship and theatre are going to take up a lot of time and I want to get started on some research for my senior project in the libraries here so I think a bit lighter semster as far as actual courses will suit me well. For the teaching internship I will spend 4 to 5 hours per week working with an English teacher as a teaching assistant. As I understand it I will be teaching lessons on different American cultural topics of my choosing. I do not have my placement and am not exactly sure what it will entail, but I'm really looking forward to it. The theatre course (aka French play rehearsals) looks lilke it is going to take a lot of time, but I think it will be a very good production in the end. The man directing it is a bit intense and expects a lot of us.. right away. It's good for me- causing me to break out of my shell a bit. The play is called Portrait de famille by Denise Bonal. It's a fairly recent play (written in the 90s, I believe) about a woman, abandoned by her husband, who has to deal with her 3 grown up children who don't really help out with anything or appreciate her (oldest son who is suicidal, younger son who is very into himself is in love with a young Kabyle woman, daughter is a bit of an airhead and (I think?) pregnant. There is also a neighbor who's black and with whom the kids have a lot of racial tension, but the mother kind of likes. Anyways, I don't completely understand the whole plot yet but there's a brief synopsis. My role is the mother (or one of them I should say) Because there are more people than characters in the play, most of the roles are at least doubled (some parts trippled or quadrupled) and there are going to be 2 identical stages that the focus will switch between throughout the play. I don't completely understand how that's going to work either, but it sounds very interesting, quite artistic how the director has split up the roles. I will keep you updated on how the play is coming together. We have rehearsal about 5 hours per week. The production is December 8th.
I am also getting used to the tram/bus system and can pretty much get around to anywhere I want/need to now(sometimes with the help of a map : ) I went to church this past Sunday in the very south part of Nantes (not technically Nantes anymore.. Reze) I have found that church services are different here than back in the states, but this one was pretty close to what I'm used to back in Winona. It was very lively; lots of people of/around my age; and a missionary family that my church in Winona sponsers goes there. I had lunch afterwards with this family. I plan to go back to Reze this Sunday!
Upcoming things I'm looking forward to:
1. Tonight the first dinnner/meeting of AGAPE- a christian "Campus pour Christ" organization at the University
2. weekend trip to Mont St. Michel and St. Malo this Saturday
3. 3 friends from Winona, who are traveling Europe for 2 months, will be in Nantes in about a week.
4. Just booked flights for a weekend in November in Geneva
Sorry if this post is a bit sporadic or doesn't make sense... I'm finding that forming sentances in English is a bit more difficult when my brain is in French mode so much of the day.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Update on Photo situation
Some of you have been asking about seeing my photos. I have found it difficult to add a multitude of photos directly on the blog so I started a photobucket account and will post the links on the sidebar of this blog when I add new pictures. Enjoy! : )
Monday, September 13, 2010
Orientation, Croisic, and a Perfect Sunday
After a very full week of orientation, I was glad to see the weekend come. All of the information sessions and tours of the city were very useful and interesting, but sometimes long and a little bit overwhelming. Friday afternoon I walked around Nantes with a few friends and ended up hanging out by the castle (Chateau des ducs de Bretagne) until the restaurants started serving dinner (not until 7:30.. getting used to the later meals here) We ate in Quartier Boufay- a neighborhood full of restaurants, cafes, and bars containing foods from a variety of countries.
Saturday, I went to the coast with my host family. Croisic is a absolutely beautiful little town where my host mom's parrent's live. We went the their home for Lunch. I got to meet some relatives and speak a lot French. Host Ma, Host Pa, and I spent the afternoon walking around the city. The battery in my camera died the first time I tried to take a picture : ( so my host dad offered to take pictures for me. What I didn't realize right off the bat was that he would take well over 100 pictures and insist that I be in all of them! haha It was quite funny- I felt like a celebrity. Host Pa, being an artist, would sometimes place Host Ma and I depending on the sunlight and the view in the background etc. It was grand. Check out the pictures on the side!
Sunday morning I went to church with 2 firends. My friend Lindsay knows someone who has connections with a missionary family here in Nantes so we went to their church. It was very small- maybe 20-30 people at the service. The service was in some ways very similar and in others very different to what I'm used to back in the states. It was much longer (about 2 hours!) The music was pretty contemporary and easy to catch on to. We sang "Shout to the Lord" and "More Love, More Power" (in French of course.) Singing these simple, familiar songs, turned into a really powerful experience. The realization of how universal God is kept swimming through my head. It was like God's funny way of saying "Hey there! Welcome to France- Don't forget I'm still here for ya." It was a really cool moment I will likely never forget. Later Sunday afternoon, I went to a wine tasting festival with several IES students. Then we walked along the Erdre River and ended up sitting, feet dangling over the water, just people watching and enjoying the beautiful weather. It jsut felt like a Sunday afternoon- the perfect way to prepare for starting my classes this week. : )
Saturday, I went to the coast with my host family. Croisic is a absolutely beautiful little town where my host mom's parrent's live. We went the their home for Lunch. I got to meet some relatives and speak a lot French. Host Ma, Host Pa, and I spent the afternoon walking around the city. The battery in my camera died the first time I tried to take a picture : ( so my host dad offered to take pictures for me. What I didn't realize right off the bat was that he would take well over 100 pictures and insist that I be in all of them! haha It was quite funny- I felt like a celebrity. Host Pa, being an artist, would sometimes place Host Ma and I depending on the sunlight and the view in the background etc. It was grand. Check out the pictures on the side!
Sunday morning I went to church with 2 firends. My friend Lindsay knows someone who has connections with a missionary family here in Nantes so we went to their church. It was very small- maybe 20-30 people at the service. The service was in some ways very similar and in others very different to what I'm used to back in the states. It was much longer (about 2 hours!) The music was pretty contemporary and easy to catch on to. We sang "Shout to the Lord" and "More Love, More Power" (in French of course.) Singing these simple, familiar songs, turned into a really powerful experience. The realization of how universal God is kept swimming through my head. It was like God's funny way of saying "Hey there! Welcome to France- Don't forget I'm still here for ya." It was a really cool moment I will likely never forget. Later Sunday afternoon, I went to a wine tasting festival with several IES students. Then we walked along the Erdre River and ended up sitting, feet dangling over the water, just people watching and enjoying the beautiful weather. It jsut felt like a Sunday afternoon- the perfect way to prepare for starting my classes this week. : )
Monday, September 6, 2010
4 days in Bretagne
Oh la la! What a whilrwind my first several days in France have been. After many many hours of travel by plane, train, and taxi I arrived in Nantes at the IES building. I spent the first night with my host family, the Olliviers. They live in a charming little house in a neighborhood about 10 minute bus ride from my school. Elisabeth, my host mom, stays at home so I have gotten to know her best so far. She is so sweet and very patient with my French- all of the family speaks slower for me and tries to explain something if I don't understand. They're so thoughtful. I do have to say I was pleasantly surpised by the amount of French that I could understand and speak that first day... more than I was expecting.
The next morning, I left for 4 days of offsite orientation with all of the other IES students and faculty. We stayed in a hotel in Vannes and traveled to other places around Brittany each day. The first day was spent at l"Ile aux Moines. We rented bikes and explored the island and ate a picnic lunch. The rest of the weekend included visits to several little cities with ports, a very old, beautiful fortress (La fortresse de Largoet) and a creperie. I have many photos from this excursion, but am having difficutlites uploading them. Once I can get them I will add them to the blog so you can see how incredible Bretagne. Really I haven't found one place in France yet that does not have beautiful buildings and charming character.
There are so many new things that I'm learning and experiencing- my head is spinning right now trying to decide what else to tell you (it also could be because it's getting late... I was planning on blogging earlieri but alas, I ended up watching the match au foot insteed and France actually won!) I am going to call it a night and write more very soon. Bonsoir!
The next morning, I left for 4 days of offsite orientation with all of the other IES students and faculty. We stayed in a hotel in Vannes and traveled to other places around Brittany each day. The first day was spent at l"Ile aux Moines. We rented bikes and explored the island and ate a picnic lunch. The rest of the weekend included visits to several little cities with ports, a very old, beautiful fortress (La fortresse de Largoet) and a creperie. I have many photos from this excursion, but am having difficutlites uploading them. Once I can get them I will add them to the blog so you can see how incredible Bretagne. Really I haven't found one place in France yet that does not have beautiful buildings and charming character.
There are so many new things that I'm learning and experiencing- my head is spinning right now trying to decide what else to tell you (it also could be because it's getting late... I was planning on blogging earlieri but alas, I ended up watching the match au foot insteed and France actually won!) I am going to call it a night and write more very soon. Bonsoir!
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