Rome

Amsterdam and Stockholm were amazing!!!! I had so much fun. Now Stephanie and I are in Rome. It got off to a rocky start, but now everything is good. We went to the Coliseum today and walked around. Tomorrow we will be on a sightseeing tour, with a stop at the Vatican. We leave Sunday night for Paris. I'll try to post pictures tomorrow if I remember!... slash if I'm not as exhausted as I am right now!

XOXO,
Dena

Last night in Angers...

It's very bittersweet to be leaving. Obviously I can't wait to be home, but I have really grown to love it here, as well. I think I'm happier to be going home than I am sad to be leaving. Does that make sense? I'm just ready to see my sister, and then finally Cody.

My parents' visit has been amazing. Today, we went to my bank appointment, walked all over the center of town (aka shopping), had a delicious lunch at a nice restaurant, went to the cathedral and castle, came back to finish packing and cleaning my apartment, went out for crepes, and finally a beer at a local bar. It was awesome. :) Now I just can't wait to see Stephanie on Sunday!!!! Hopefully I can blog at least once more, but if not... SEE YOU IN THE STATES!!!!

Love,
Dena

Patience is a virtue...

.... that I clearly do NOT have!

I'm waiting for it to be time to go pick my parents up from the train station. Their train arrives in about 68 minutes. So, I can leave in about 30 (I have some errands to do along the way).

I cannot wait to see them!!!!

Last night, we had a final going away party. It was soooo much fun! It seemed like almost all of the international students showed up. I am really going to miss this place and all of the wonderful people I have met along the way. :( I'm probably more excited to be getting home, though.

Lists

My parents are in Paris!! Woohoo!! Not really sure what they are up to today, but they are safe. :)

I figured now would be as good of a time as any to make a couple of lists. One is a list of the things I will miss about Angers/France, and the other it things I will either not miss... or I really just miss about home. So, here it goes.

Things I will miss:

• Kebab- SO yummy!
  
• Neil Thomas- my marketing professor. He liked to wear vests.
  
• Shopping
• Mims, Bershka, Zara- a bunch of French stores
  
• Having one class a day... in the middle of the afternoon
• Cheap shoes
• Soldes- the sales all over France
  
• Seeing Chateau D'Angers every day
• My computer (RIP)
• International friends
• Gardens
• Lion Candy Bars
• Sending letters/postcards
• Improving my French- obviously I will still be improving by taking classes, but it just won't be the same as actually being in France
  
• Walking everywhere

Things I will not miss:

• Public Transportation
• ESSCA's crazy class schedule
• Carrefour- ugh the lines are worse than Walmart!
  
• Not being about to speak English outside of school and my apartment
• Being so far away from family and friends
• Smelly French people- only 70% of French women wear deodorant!
  
• BNP Paribas- my French bank
  
• MagicJack- my "phone" that is on my computer. I can't hear the person I am talking to half of the time
  
• No rootbeer
• Not having an oven or dishwasher
  
• Not having my phone
• Paying for laundry/the dryer/the dryer not actually working- so my in my apartment next year, I will have to pay for laundry again, but I have a bunch of friends who have free laundry so I'll probably just go visit someone once a week :)
  
• Cultural differences/communication problems

Some Nice Pictures

We took a tourist bus ride around Nice. I just couldn't get over the square head. I think there might be an office building inside of it.



Monaco Grand Prix!



Cannes Film Festival!



Be on the beach in Nice. It was so nice. :) Haha. Pun intended.


My parents leave for Paris today!!!!!! Then I will finally see them on Thursday after they arrive tomorrow. Then I will see Stephanie on Sunday. I am so excited! Then time to go home. :) Finally.

Dena

Nice time in Nice

I'm off to Nice early in the morning! Too bad it is supposed to rain the entire time I am there. :( But I will also be going to Cannes, and possibly Monaco. It will be fun!

Be back Saturday.

XOXO,
Dena

Rainy Saturday

I LOVE RAIN!... just sayin

Today, Ashley and I had a few errands to do, but only one of them got accomplished. We needed to go to the CAF office, buy escargot, eat lunch, and go grocery shopping.

CAF: I had to go to the doctor for a physical last week (in Nantes), then I filled out a bunch of forms, then I turn them in at the CAF office. After I do this, they will help me pay for my rent! Since my rent is already mostly paid, though, my landlord will put the extra money in my bank account. But the office was not open since it is Saturday. We'll have to go on Monday after class.

Escargot: The typical way someone makes escargot is in an oven, but we found a recipe to make it on the stove. And when in France, right? So we went to the Saturday market, and we couldn't find any. Usually there is a bunch! Very strange.

Lunch: This is the only thing that got accomplished. We ate kebabs at our favorite stand. I will miss that so much!!

Grocery store: For some reason the buses aren't running today! We had to use the Sunday bus to get from CAF to the market. We walked everywhere else. So therefore, we have no way of getting to Carrefour. So we decided to just go to Marché Plus (which I have been pronouncing wrong the entire time I've been here). But of course it had to be closed. So we'll have to go on Monday. The tiny grocery store is open, but I'm sure I can scrounge around today and tomorrow for food from my fridge.


Oh, so my roommate has been MIA the last two weeks, and she finally came back last night. Then her parents came today and she moved out. She'll have to come back though in a few weeks to check out with the landlord... so I'm not sure if I'll ever see her again. She left me a note because I didn't see her last night or today. That was nice.

Now I will continue to enjoy my rainy day :)

XOXO,
Dena

London... a tad late

I am so bad with updating!! I was really good about it in the beginning. I will make up for it by posting a ton of pictures!



Big Ben and Parliament!! BB was much taller than I expected, actually.



The London Eye. It was so amazing to go to the top. Thanks, Stephanie, for practically making me do it! I hate heights, but it wasn't scary at all. I could see all of London from the very top, or so it seemed.



Fish n' Chips... of course. It was delicious! I got it two nights for dinner. This is a lot coming from me, considering I don't generally enjoy fish. I loved it though, so maybe I am turning over a new leaf and becoming less picky of an eater?



Buckingham Palace. We went and saw the changing of the guards. Honestly it was just boring to watch. Haha. It was basically the same as the changing of the guards in Monaco, only it lasted longer and there were more guards. Of course I had to take tons of pictures of the guards in funny hats, but they were all turned wrong, and I'm not sure how to rotate pictures on here.



Tower of London Bridge. It is often confused as being London Bridge. We took a nice boat ride, which went under both bridges, and I didn't even take a picture of London Bridge because it looked so boring! It was just a boring old bridge. This one was much much cooler.

More London Pictures

Me, riding on the London Eye. You can see Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminister Abbey behind me. The Eye was probably my favorite part of London. It was so much fun!!!



This is the Peter Pan statue in Kensington Park. It took forever to find because the directions kept steering us in the wrong direction!! It was well worth it. This is one of the things I really wanted to see.



Of course I had to take a picture with a telephone booth!!! And I even used one. :)



This is in front of Shakespeare Globe theater. This is one of the other places I really wanted to go. I'm sad that it isn't a very good picture. :( We could not take pictures inside the theater because they were actually doing rehearsals. It was very neat to see that being done. I would have loved to see the show, but they were opening the same day we left.



Yummiest Mexican food EVER!!!! And by ever, I mean, since I have been in Europe.

I'm back!

I'm back from London! The only info I'll release for now is that it was AMAZING!!! I loved it, and I am missing it already. I woke up from a nap a couple of hours ago, and now I am getting ready to go to bed for good. Hopefully I will update and post some pictures tomorrow or Sunday!

Love,
Dena

London!

I leave for London in the morning! Yay! Well technically Paris, but whatever. We will be there tomorrow night, leave for London Tuesday morning, and then back to Paris early Friday morning. I'll let you know how it goes when I get back! I doubt I will be able to blog while I am there or in Paris, but maybe. I will definitely post pictures soon after I get back.

XOXO,
Dena

Pictures

I thought I would post some more photos. Two are from Cody's visit, and the first two are from yesterday. I hate how they show up out of order, but oh well. Cody was clearly here before yesterday, so just pretend like the ones of him and I are posted first.

Me with my sandwich yesterday. We went for a walk by the river. It was so nice outside!!

Last night, Ashley and I decided to make hot fudge sundaes! We went to Marche Plus to buy ice cream and whipped cream. Then we melted chocolate we already had mixed with cream, and the put the ice cream on top. So delish.


Us in front of the Eiffel Tower (obviously...)


Cody and I at the chocolate show. SOOO yummy!

I hope everyone is having a great weekend! Mine went by way too fast (as usual). This is my last week of class before Spring Break. YAY! Then it's off to Paris and London for 5 days. :) It is going to be so much fun! Then it's just a few more weeks until my trip to Nice and Cannes to see my sorority sister that is working at the Cannes Film Festival. It will be so cool Nice is my favorite city in France, so I am excited to return, and I have never been to Cannes.

Oh, so Ashley and I went out for Lebanese food on Friday. Bad idea. I will probably not be doing that again. At least while I am here. I would be willing to go to a Lebanese restaurant in the states, where I would be able to actually read the menu and know what I am ordering!

Have a good Sunday!
Dena

Happy Easter!!

Hope everyone is having a great day! It's so weird to not be having a huge lunch with my family after going to church. But I'll definitely be home for next year!

I forgot the rest of my week of hell! My computer decided to break on Saturday also! The monitor basically came apart, so I glued it back together. I think it will be able to last the rest of the semester... as long as I don't move it from the spot it is in. Saturday was also the day that Bridget had our meeting for housing next year. It didn't go so well at first because we got a bad location and are going to have to spend a lot more money than where we wanted. But a few days ago SLU gave us our housing scholarships back! So now it is actually cheaper. It is still bad about the location because the apartment is in the opposite direction of where I want it to be, but it will due. I think it'll be nice. It's fully furnished and technically off campus, though it is "SLU run." Not really sure what that means yet, but we'll find out!

I don't have class tomorrow, so that will be nice. Everything will be closed, so if it is nice outside, Ashley and I are planning on going to a park. It has been rainy and cold though. We also did laundry today... festive I know! Haha. But I got it done. It is currently lying on my floor drying. About every ten minutes I have to put a new shirt on the radiator (or whenever the current item on it is dry). I won't do it again the weekend we get back from London. We have all of our tickets purchased! Now we just need to find a hotel in London. That won't be too hard since there are about a billion.

Once again, Happy Easter!
Dena

Hell Week

So sorry about not posting! I am so bad at this blogging thing. Last week was the week from hell. Literally. We had an American professor, and we had to do all these ridiculous projects. Thank goodness he is gone! I even had class on Saturday. Booooo. It was terrible. So this week I have just been trying to recuperate from last week's nonsense! I was hoping to post pictures from Cody's visit for this blog, but I don't have very many. He took the majority of them, so they are on his camera/computer. I'll put them up whenever I get them! However, I put a few up anyway.

I just read that there is a new Twilight book coming out! It isn't part of the series, but it is still about vampires. Yay! Can't wait for the Eclipse moving. Going to the IMAX at midnight! Double yay!

I'm going to go ahead and get my homework done for tomorrow, and then I am going to cook dinner. Hope everyone has a good Wednesday!

Dena

A few pictures

Us in front of Notre Dame!


You can see the castle in Angers and the big cathedral behind us. That is the river that runs down the middle of Angers, and it was REALLY flooded. You can't even see the running path because it was covered in water.


This is us at the chocolate show. Yum!

Fountain at Jardin du Mail.

Cody's Visit!

Sorry I haven't blogged, but I feel like I was barely in my apartment when Cody was here, and this week has been lovely outside so I've spent a lot of time out of the apartment, and I've also had a lot of homework. So, here is the play by play of Cody's visit:

Thursday March 4th
Cody arrives! He got here while I was in class, so he took the bus to ESSCA, got my key, and then went back to my apartment (all with me only seeing him leave ESSCA through the window). After he picked me up from class, we came back to my apartment and made buffalo chicken wraps. So yummy! Also, it was my friend Claudia's birthday, so we went to her birthday party for a while.

Friday March 5th
I had class, and then afterword we went to the train station to change our tickets for Paris because my next Friday class was canceled. After that we got pizza to eat in the apartment, and after that we went out for a while.

Saturday March 6th
On Saturday we explored and walked around A LOT. We started off with shopping around the street market. There wasn't really anything good. We also got his bus pass, so he wouldn't have to pay to use the bus anymore. We walked alllll over Angers. We had lunch at my favorite Kebab place, and it was yummy of course. Then we went to the chocolate show. It was so neat!! We bought some drinking chocolate, which is basically thick hot chocolate. We didn't drink any of it while he was here though and he took it home. We also walked along the river a lot and looked at the flooding (it is completely down now though). There is a theater by the river, and we went to the roof to look at the view. After our day of walking, we took a trip to Carrefour to buy seafood.

Sunday March 7th
On this day, we tried to sleep in a little bit. Then the day was filled with making Paella! It was delicious, but not as good as the first batch in my opinion. Sunday night, we went to the movie theater and saw the movie Nine. It was okay... but really weird!

Monday March 8th
I didn't have class on Monday, so we went to the castle and cathedral in the morning, and then later went to this cute bakery that is close to school. I can't really remember what we did after that though! I know we went somewhere, but I can't remember where. Oh well!

Tuesday March 9th
I had French, so I went to that, and I really can't remember what we did on this day either! I do know that we made tortellini for dinner, like I always get at restaurants, and that was yummy. Then we walked Ashley to her dance class, but she couldn't find the building, so we went home. On the way back to the apartment, though, we bought some pistachio ice cream. Yum!

Wednesday March 10th
I had class until 12, so Cody met Ashley and I afterward. We took the bus to our favorite hamburger place, and that was so good! Those hamburgers are amazing! Then we went to Carrefour so we could buy the things needed for chicken fricassee! That is Cody's favorite food, so he decided to make it for me. :) I liked it, but he said it wasn't the best, so he'll have to make it again for me this summer. I also had to work on a French presentation that Ashley and I had to give on Thursday.

Thursday March 11th
Thursday before my class, Cody and I woke up early so we could go to the Jardin des Plantes. It was really pretty, but it will be even more gorgeous when everything is in bloom. We just had all of our leftovers for lunch. They really needed to get eaten! Then I went to my French class (where I gave my presentation) and left Cody at the apartment to do our laundry. Ha! Then he met us outside the class... surprising me with flowers!! :) I was one happy girl! :) Then we took a tour of the Cointreau distillery. That was neat. The rest of the night was basically spent getting ready for Paris in the morning.

Friday March 12th
We had to wake up at about 6 so we could catch our train at 8:09 am for Paris. We arrived in Paris at 9:40, got on the metro, and went to Dot's apartment. We left our luggage there, since we didn't think we'd be able to check in to our hotel yet. She showed us where the Louvre museum was, and that is where we started. After that we went to Notre Dame and Centre Pompidu. Then we checked in to our hotel, and went back to Dot's apartment to meet her after her class. We took our luggage back to the hotel while Dot went running, and I also changed out of my yucky travel clothes. We went back to Dot's apartment, where we hung out and met a couple of her friends.

Saturday March 13th
We decided to sleep in on Saturday, since we hadn't slept in at all during his stay. That got ruined though because of course there had to be a fire alarm at 8 in the morning! We got all bundled up (because it was freezing outside), went down the stairs, made it to the bottom floor, only to find out that something burned in the kitchen and we could go back up to our rooms. We had to make it all the way back up to the 6th floor. I think the only way I did it without stopping was because I was too tired to notice. Haha. After successfully sleeping in, we made our way back to the Louvre for lunch. It was soooo good! I had quiche Lorraine, and Cody had a panini. It was amazing! It was strange though because pigeons were in the shop. So so strange. Then we walked inside the tuleries (the gardens around the Louvre). At the end we saw the obelisk and where the guillotine was during the revolutionary war. Then we made our way to the Eiffel Tower! We had to wait in line for a really long time, but we made it to the top! After that we went back to the hotel (mainly so I could get a sweatshirt... it was so cold!), and then out to get food. We walked toward the Arc de Triomphe, and along the way we found a place to eat. First we went to the arc though so we could look at it. We also walked a ways down the Champs Elysee (unfortunately no shopping though). Then we turned around and ate at the cafe we found. It was so good, and it was nice to sit down at a real restaurant and have a real meal. I haven't really done that since being here. Then we went back to the tuleries, and watched the Eiffel Tower (we were trying to stay to watch it glitter, but it never did!)

Sunday March 14th
Of course we woke up 10 minutes before we were supposed to leave, but we made it! The metro we needed to get everywhere was of course closed, so we had to do all this ridiculous stuff to get around. We eventually got to the airport, and Cody left. :( His plane was at 12:25, and all was well. It was a VERY VERY sad day. I went to the train station, where I caught a train back to Angers at 1:16. Ashley and I went to a new pizza place for dinner, and it was yummy! I hadn't eaten all day because I was too sad and nervous.

Okay... that was a lot. I commend you if you actually read it all! Nothing too much has happened this week. Just lots of school work. I am very very excited for the weekend! Ashley and I are going in search of a castle on Saturday. Also, the weather has been absolutely amazing!!! I didn't even wear a jacket today. :) Just a cardigan.

Hope everyone had a GREAT St. Patty's Day! It isn't really celebrated here, which is completely different from Rolla! I will post pictures once I get them all from Cody. The majority are on his camera.

Dena

Next 10 Days

Hey everyone! Just an update! Cody is aboard his first plane to Chicago! Then he has another stop in DC and then will be in Paris!!!! I am going to see him in just under 24 hours! YAYAYAY! Anyway, I haven't been up to too much else. I have my first French test tomorrow. That's why I can't pick Cody up from the train station. :( I won't get to see him until 6 even though he gets to Angers at about 1. Went to the grocery store yesterday and bought food for his visit, and then went to the one closer to me to buy soda and juice. But yeah I am SO excited! I do need to study for my test some more tonight, but I should be okay. Did a bit of shopping this past weekend, don't think I bought anything though. I found a new favorite sandwich shop on Saturday! I got a sandwich, fries, and a drink for only 4.50 euros! It was so much food and so good! I ate there Monday too. Haha. Speaking of food, I'll make myself some dinner when Cody's next plane takes off. I'm really hungry! Hope everyone is having a fabulous day!
Dena

At school

Hello all! I am in the mediatheque at school right now working on my presentation and the side trip Cody and I will be taking while he is here. So far I'm leaning towards Bordeaux, Mont Saint Michel, or Marseille. We'll see! I've also been working on what I will show him while he is in Angers and then where we will go in Paris. I had International Marking this morning, and at 3 I am on my way to EU in the World. This is the class that I will have my presentation in tomorrow. I think I will do fine. The presentation is complete, so I just need to practice tonight when I am home. Also, it took me a really long time to figure out the internet. I had to ask a fellow international student. Good thing I did! I never would have known how to do any of what she told me to do. I think I am going to go get a drink from La Kaz before class. La Kaz is this cool place in the school where all the kids can hang out. There are vending machines, coffee machines (with great hot chocolate for me and espresso for dad!), and even a cafe. The cafe is closed right now since all the kids (and everyone else in France) are on holiday. I like buying croissants and chocolat du pain from the cafe before my morning classes. American bread will never be the same for me! I think I am off to get that drink.

Everyone in the states is probably still asleep. Haha.

Dena

Manic Monday

Today has felt like a pretty good day! I had French from 1:30-3. I also had my first French fire alarm. Good thing it was so gorgeous outside today!! Plus it took away about 5 minutes of class, which I am not complaining about. After class, I took the bus to my usual stop, but instead of heading home, I went to the English Language Library in Angers to work on my presentation for Thursday. I love it there! Unfortunately, this week is some sort of French holiday, so they were closed. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because I was absolutely famished, so I stopped at the grocery store to pick up a few things and then went ahead and made dinner. I made chicken caesar wraps! Sooo good! I have been craving buffalo chicken wraps, and this was the next best thing. I will definitely be making Cody and I bc wraps/salads when he is here! I can't wait for the buffalo sauce he bought me. Haha. He'll be here in less than a week and a half! Anyway, after my very early dinner I got to work on my presentation. I've gotten quite a bit done. I'll probably finish it up tomorrow. I don't have class until 3, so I am going to head to the mediatheque (basically a library) at ESSCA (my school) and work on my presentation until it is time for class. Then maybe I can actually have some fun tomorrow night! Probably not though because I feel so unprepared for this presentation, and I want to work on it as much as possible without a brain overload. I think it is slowly sneaking up on me.

I'm going to try to get to bed fairly soon. I need the sleep and also to be able to get up at a decent hour in the morning.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous day in America!
Dena

Week of Presentations

I have had the busiest week ever! I have mostly been working on my two presentations for a class. My group presented this past Thursday, and it did not go very well, unfortunately. Immediately after that I had to start work on my presentation that I am giving this next Thursday. I have so much work to do! Plus I have some French homework due tomorrow (which is almost complete) and my Pi Chi application had to be done by yesterday (which I was told on Friday). Busy busy! Yesterday and today I have only been working on my presentation. Last night I was able to have a little fun by going out for a late dinner with Ashley. We went to this pizza place called Pinocchio. It was okay, but I'm not sure if I will be going back. We went to our favorite burger place on Thursday after my presentation. It is just so darn good!!!

Well... back to working on my presentation. I will try to update again, but I feel like I will be doing nothing but work.

Dena

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! I started my day off by working with my group on our presentation that we are presenting on Thursday. Now Ashley and I are making Paella! So far it is looking really good! It should be done in about 10-15 minutes. I can't wait. I am so so hungry!!

I hope everyone has a lovely day. :)

XOXO,
Dena

Normandy

I guess I got out of the loop of updating after not having a computer to update on! Sorry!

Saturday I went to Normandy! It was so so amazing. We went to the German Cemetery, American Cemetery (Osage Beach), and Juno Beach (where the Canadians landed). It was so cool! We left at 6:45 in the morning though. UGH. That was awful. I tried to sleep on the way, but the bus was tiny and uncomfortable. I think it would just be easiest to post some pictures, so everyone can see where I was! One funny story first... Ashley and I were a couple of feet from where the tide had gone up at Osage Beach, and then all of a sudden there was a huge wave and soaked our feet! It was so so funny. We were not expecting that.
The pictures will be in the next blog up, but here are the descriptions of the photos. The black crosses are at the German Cemetery, the white crosses/ Star of Davids are at the American Cemetery, Ashley and I at Osage Beach (also the American Cemetery and where Grandpa Esco landed!), and finally me in the trench at Juno Beach.

I hope that everyone is having a fabulous day! Normandy is pretty much the only interesting thing that has been happening lately. Basically I just get up and go to class, then come back to my apartment. Otherwise I don't do much.

Love,
Dena

Normandy Pictures

Sorry for the absence

I sort of had technical difficulties this week, so sorry for not posting! My computer charger died, so I had to order a new one. Nothing too interesting happened this week (or anything that I can remember right now). I basically just went to class this week, with nothing really exciting happening. I did my laundry last night for the first time... that was quite an experience. The dryer was terrible and I was out of money, so I ended up having to lye my clothes all over my room and bathroom in order for them to dry.

I got my schedule today for the entire semester... and some days I have 9 hours of class. :( That is going to be so so terrible, but at least it isn't everyday. Also, ESSCA made me take a 5th class, so that makes it even worse to add that to my 4 I had planned on taking. There goes my easy class schedule for the semester! At least the majority of the week that Cody will be here isn't that terrible. He bought his plane tickets this week! :D:D That is very exciting! He will be here March 4th-March 14th. I can't wait!

I am off to Normandy in the morning. We have to meet the group at 6:45 in the morning. :( So I am off to shower and bed!

Goodnight!
Dena

NCIS

Also, yesterday before dinner we had some free time, so Ashley and I walked around Saturn (an electronics store). I wanted to look at DVDs. All of the seasons of NCIS (which is what I wanted) were 40 Euros a piece! So stupid! I might have to buy a season or two from itunes. Then they could be on my phone too.

Okay, just wanted to add that.

Welcome weekend

Yesterday and today was part of welcome weekend, put on by United Cultures, a club at ESSCA that helps the international students. It was so much fun! Yesterday we had this tracking game all around Angers, where we had to find our way around, and at each stop we had to complete a task. My team went so fast that we caught up with the team in front of us. Unfortunately they were really slow so we got stuck behind them and lost. Oh well, it was still fun! After that I went in the Castle of Angers, but I couldn't stay long because it was closing. After that we had dinner at a creperie and then went to a pub.

Today, we went all over France. First we went to a town about 45 minutes away (which I slept on the drive...) to visit a winery, Bouvet Ladubay. It was neat to see how they make wine. After that we drove for another 45 minutes to Amboise, where we ate lunch, saw the outside of a famous house and then took a tour of Amboise chateau royal. Leonardo DiVinci is buried in the chapel there! So, that was really neat. This castle is where the king and queen of France lived in the 15th and 16th century. It had such a great view from the top of the towers.

Attached are pictures of me at DiVinci's tomb and on top of one of the towers. After we left there, we just drove back home. I am SO tired. I had to wake up at about 7 this morning. So, I am getting ready to go to bed now.

Goodnight all!
Dena

My day

Well I have barely anything to say. Probably not worth blogging about! Today was lazy! I woke up around 11, went to the bank at 2 to pay my rent, then went to school to get my schedule for next week. Won't be too bad. I have my EU in the world class 3 times and French twice. The only problem is how long the classes are! Two of my EU are 3 hours and then my other classes are 1.5. But that is basically it of what I did today. I was just so tired! So we hung out around the apartment and watched movies. I'm going to have a busy weekend so it was nice to sleep. It is welcome weekend, and it is going to be so much fun! It starts tomorrow at 2, so I get to sleep in again. :) Yay! I'll let you all know how it goes tomorrow night!

Love,
Dena

French

I went to the correct French class today! I honestly think I can say it is going to be one of the most challenging classes I have ever had! I only knew what was going on about half the time. It'll be good though. I would much rather it be challenging so that I learn something rather than go to the level below it and learn nothing new.

Ashley and I are getting ready to go out to eat. If there is anything about that to post, I will do it later! I just wanted to let everyone know that I actually made it to the correct class. Haha

Dena

Today was my first international marketing class. I think I am really going to enjoy it! Plus, he posts all the notes on ESSCAnet after class, so that we don't have to take any! I took some today just in case though. My professor is English, so some of the words on the power point were spelled funny. It was quite amusing. Also, instead of 'z' he would put an 's'. For example analyse. The three hour part is the only thing I'll have to conquer. Getting through that was a little difficult! After class (around 11:45), Ashley and I were just going to go home, but there wasn't another bus until 12:33, so we just got on the same bus going the opposite way and rode it all the way to the end and back. It was fun! Much better than standing in the cold, only to get on the same bus. So, that was interesting. We came across a great little park at the end of the route. After we finally made it home, it was pretty much a boring evening. Watched a couple of movies (while dozing off) and made some dinner. Now it's almost time for bed... which will be located in my own room. I'm kind of nervous! I really like the comfort of being in the same room as Ashley, but I know it'll be fine. I'm excited. Though my heater is fixed, it still feels a bit chilly in my room, but I'm sure that's just me. I'm always cold!

I apologize for no title... I couldn't think of one!

Nighty night!
Dena

I HAVE A HEATER!!!

That's all that I wanted to say. :) I can't wait to sleep in my own room tonight!

XOXO,
Dena

Not too much

Well, I don't have too much to report today! I paid my housing insurance, got my French bank account set up, and made it to both of my classes today! That last one was a BIG yay! I think I am going to love my European Retailing class! I dropped my international law class for it. After class (I went from 3-5), I went to the grocery store closer to my apartment to get drinks, ate dinner, and just watched some Gilmore Girls. Overall, I'd say today was a pretty low-key day. I found Dr. Pepper today... but no diet or diet caffeine free. Bummer, but still... the first DP I've seen since being in France! Tomorrow I have International Marketing from 9-12. Ugh I do not want to wake up early!! I am headed to bed very shortly. I don't think I have any plans for after class. I need to clean my room up a bit and take the trash out (I have yet to take it downstairs).

Goodnight all! Hopefully I will have more to report tomorrow!

Wait. Speaking of reports, I am in dire need of a subject for my first newspaper article! It is due Sunday, and I have no clue what to write about! I was thinking of just an intro as to who I am and where I am this semester. If anyone has ideas, please share!!

Dena

P.S. I will have my heater by next week apparently.

Whoops...

So I had my first class today!! Unfortunately, I missed it... however there is a very good reason!

Everyday when I go to school, I have to check the time table to see what room my class will be in. Well, it is REALLY confusing, and it said French 1 & 3... so naturally I thought that both groups were together. I knew this was weird because group 3 is the most advanced and 1 is the easiest. But I still didn't think anything of it. So... I went to the wrong classroom. I thought everything was too easy, but I didn't realize it until class was over. So... yeah. Missed my first class in France! Whoops! I promise I will definitely look at the time table more closely tomorrow to make sure I go to the correct classroom! I refuse to let this happen again! I spoke to the French teachers whose class I accidentally went to, and she is going to tell my real French teacher what happened, so everything is okay. :)

After class, Ashley and I went back to the insurance place, but the girl wasn't there again. The guy told us she is working tomorrow, so we will go back tomorrow... again. Then we went grocery shopping at carefour. It was HUGE... like walmart.... only bigger! I didn't know that was possible! Ashley and I cooked dinner, and it was yummy. I got some chocolate du pain (my favorite!) to have the next week everyday for breakfast. I can't wait to warm it up in the morning!

Agenda for tomorrow: wake up, go to insurance place, go to my appointment at the bank, class from 3-5, then who knows!

P.S. I still have no heater.

Love, Dena

Lazy Sunday

Yes today was extremely lazy! I didn't wake up until noon! It was absolutely amazing. Then we went grocery shopping, but the one we wanted to go to was closed, so we went to the smaller one that is right by us. We made pasta with white sauce and zucchini for dinner! It was good, and tasted mostly like what I would make at home. Then we watched two movies, and I fell asleep during the first one. I am sooo exhausted, despite sleeping so late today. I could probably go straight back to bed and wake up in the morning.

I have my first class tomorrow at 1:30. It's French, so we'll see how it goes! After that, I am going back to the insurance place and then grocery shopping.

Now back to my lazy Sunday night.
Goodnight all!
Dena

I blew up an adapter

Yes, what my title says is true. :( I blew up the adapter that I usually plug my computer into. It was a very sad morning! I also ended up blowing the breaker, so Ashley restarted it. I now also have to use the adapter Ashley uses for her blow dryer/flat iron until I can get a new one. So that will work fine for now. It is so expensive to buy them here!

After that, the day got much better. We went shopping! First we went to look for a new adapter, but it was way too expensive. We ate at pita burger... it was so good! I loved their French fries. Then... let the shopping begin! We walked SO MUCH today. Like.... seriously so much. I bought boots (don't worry... they were on sale, daddy!), a towel, and some silverware. I found a bag from Mims that I also might go back and buy. It was cute... but I want to make sure that it is "the" bag before I pay that much. Haha.

After a long day of shopping, we stopped by the apartment to grab our passports, and then headed to the English Language Library in Angers (ELLIA). It was so fun! I signed up for a membership, got 3 books, and the woman working even asked if I would like to volunteer at the library! That will be amazing. The only problem is that I have class this week during the children time. :( Hopefully I can go next week! That would be so much fun. I have always wanted to work in a library or book store! The picture is of me with my library card. I feel so special to have it!

Now I think we are going to get a pizza from Speed Rabbit Pizza, which is right down the street, and bring it home and watch a movie. We are planning a night this week to go out to dinner at this new cafe that just opened by us.

Oh, also I still do not have a heater.

I hope everyone has a good day!
XOXO,
D

Unproductive day

Hello all! Like the title says, today was very unproductive. We started off by going to the bank, but of course they were closed. So we went to this insurance place that we had to go to, and they were closed too. So we grabbed sandwiches, and then went back to the insurance place (they were on lunch break). The guy working didn't have any idea what was going on (I spoke French to him though and knew everything he was saying!!) and said that we had to come back on Monday. So after that we went back to the bank and they said we had to come back on Tuesday! So basically I got nothing done today. I came back to the apartment for about an hour, but then Ashley had class so I went to ESSCA with her. I basically just texted with my mom, dad, and Cody for 2 hours. Haha. It was some good time wasted. On the way back to the apartment, Ashley and I stopped at the grocery store to get dinner. I grabbed some French cookies and chips to try out. Now we are just having a lazy night at home after our exhausting unproductive day!

Hope everyone is having a great day! The picture is of the Castle of Angers. It was my second time seeing it (first time on foot). The first time I saw it was when we were in the van with the welcome team members from the train station.

XOXO,
Dena

It's the weekend!

I was way too exhausted last night to post. Sorry all!

Yesterday was really good... but I had too much to do! After orientation, I went and bought a bus pass and then went to open my French bank account. Unfortunately, all I could do was sign the papers though and I will put money in it tomorrow because for some reason they wouldn't take traveler's checks until Friday. After that I had about 30 minutes in my apartment until the ESSCA international students met for dinner. It lasted 3 hours! We were all talking so much that we didn't want to leave. There was a party after, but Ashely and I were so exhausted that we just decided to come home.

Today went really well too! After orientation, I decided that I would spend tonight in my apartment. Ashley, Allen (a boy that goes to SLU also), and I watched a DVD of Gilmore Girls. It was so fun. I love that show so much! Then I spoke with my third roommate for a really long time. She is so nice and is wanting to work on her English, so we are going to swap movies. She will watch mine in English, and I can watch hers in French. She is a French student that goes to ESSCA. I think I will be able to learn a lot from her.

I got my class schedule for the week! I don't have any classes tomorrow, but Ashley has one from 4:30- 7:30 (yes on a Friday night!), so I am going to go to school with her. I have to meet with Paola, the international student department head, and then I will go to the computer lab or read a book. Hopefully I will also make it to the English Language Library in Angers (ELLIA) tomorrow before I go to school. I really want to get involved with it. It sounds like a really great place for people who speak English to get a chance to get together and meet. But anyway, my first class is on Monday. I have French from 1:30 until 3. That will be fun and interesting.

Goodnight all! I am excited to sleep in. :)
Dena

P.S. I still don't have a heater installed. Did I say that they completely took my heater out? Well they did yesterday, and I didn't have one again today. Hopefully soon!

First day of orientation

Well, today was my first day at ESSCA! Fortunately, I woke up on time today! Also, catching the bus went smooth as well. I'll get a bus pass on Thursday so that I don't have to pay daily anymore. Orientation went well. I didn't meet that many people, but it was only the first day. There are only 7 students from the United States! Out of about 55 international students. WOW! I expecting more than that. It will be good though because everyone speaks English, though I've tried speaking French as much as possible. We had a welcome lunch, and I tried some crazy foods! I don't even know how to describe them in order to share them with you. Haha. I got completely done with orientation around 3, so Ashley and I came back to the apartment. Later I went to the bank and spoke to the manager of the apartment complex about getting my heater fixed. Someone will have to come in tomorrow because she couldn't fix it herself. Hopefully it will be fixed by the time I get home from school!! It will be nice to be on my computer without it freezing! I wish there were two Ethernet places in Ashley's room. At least it's warm in there! I also bought some orange juice today from the grocery store, so I can have some in the morning. :) That will be nice. I loved my croissant this morning! I might be going to bed soon. I need the sleep, I'm sure! Orientation is tomorrow at 10am. I still need to figure out what time to catch the bus, also. Hopefully it'll be easier to fall asleep at night as the time goes on.

So... I kind of realized that this is more of a diary than a blog. Oh well. :) Everyone will just be well informed of my daily whereabouts, which is perfectly fine.

Goodnight :)
Dena

Bonjour from France!

Hi everyone! This is my first blog from France. Everything went very smooth as far as travel goes. The plane to Philadelphia was a snap. I read my book (Message in a Bottle by Nicholas Sparks) and listened to music on my iPhone. Then Ashely and I had a 4 hour layover (plus a one hour plane delay), so we decided to get a Philly Cheese Steak. I'm sure that it wasn't as good as getting one outside of the airport, but it works! Once we got on the plane from Philly to Paris, we found out that Ashley weren't sitting together. :( But we got the man that was supposed to sit next to me to switch with Ashley. Thank goodness! I would have gone crazy if I were sitting next to him. Let's just say that he was not skinny... haha. I watched The Time Traveler's Wife on my personal video screen, and then went to sleep for about 3 hours. I've been dying to see that movie! We got to Paris at about 10:30 in the morning (France time), and our train was scheduled to leave at 1:16. We both got our luggage fine (thank goodness!) and then went in search of the train station, which luckily was in the airport. We weren't really sure what to do in while waiting, so we just sat. We needed to go to the bathroom, but it cost .50 euro, so we just waited until we got on the train. Then it was free. I'm thinking about making that my first article for The University News at SLU. Any thoughts or ideas?
Once, we got off the train, two students from ESSCA, Caroline and Paul, were waiting for us. We were so excited when we found them because we weren't exactly sure where to look find them. They brought us to our apartment and then basically left us. I won't go into that though. It made me very very upset! I'm also a little sad to say, also, that my first meal in France was at Subway. But it definitely didn't taste as good as the American Subway! We were way to tired and upset that the students left us to venture out on our own to look around and find food, so we just ate there because there is one right by my apartment building. After that we came back to our apartment, unpacked, showered, spoke to everyone on the phone/skype, watched a movie, and went to sleep. We wanted to feel refreshed in the morning.
Unfortunately, we never saw the morning though. My alarm clock that I brought with me got fried, even though I used an adapter!! I'm also afraid that my flat iron got fried, too. :( It made a buzzing noise when I plugged it in so I unplugged it and probably won't plug it in ever again!! Anyway, so we didn't wake up until 3pm! While that was 8 hours after we planned on waking up (wow!), it was definitely good that we slept, and it definitely made me feel better about the whole situation of being here. So we got dressed and headed out. We stopped in Subway for drinks, and he told us where the cheapest electronic store was so Ashley could buy an Ethernet cord. We also bought a new alarm clock for 15 euros. It has a projector! It's really cool. Maybe I'll use it when I get back to the states. Haha. We only bought one. I'm staying in her room right now anyway, so it's fine. Plus I'm hoping my phone will still work as an alarm too. Then we went to a photo store and Ashley used a kiosk to print some photos. Then we got a sandwich (ham and butter), croissant, and drink for only 3 euros! It was so good! My picture is me eating my sandwich. :) Then we went grocery shopping and got a few things for the next few days. On the way back we stopped at a grocery store that was a bit closer to the apartment to get drinks because they would be too heavy to carry from where we were. There was also an H & M by the grocery store and electronic store we went to! We'll go shopping this weekend, maybe. :) Who knew all of my H & M clothes would come in handy?? Haha. I should have Cody bring me the rest of them.
So, we got back to our apartment and just hung out because it was starting to drizzle and get chilly outside. A couple of hours later, we were hungry so we went out exploring again for food. We found a little restaurant, and I had a chicken panini, fries, and a drink... for only 5,50 euros! Everything feels so cheap, but I guess that is close to 7 dollars. I guess I can stop talking about food now, but it's all so yummy! Plus it's just part of my day, and I really want to share everything. It's almost 10pm here, so I'll probably shower soon and try to sleep. Hopefully I'll be able to, even though I've only been up for about 7 hours! The shower will make me tired, and I'll probably take some benadryl. :) That always helps. But I absolute cannot sleep late tomorrow because I need to leave my apartment by 8:45 just to make sure I make it to meet my bus at 9:01. Orientation at school starts tomorrow at 9:30. Oh! I met my roommate. She is French, and seems very nice! She came in and spoke with me and made sure I knew how to do everything to get to school tomorrow.
I hope everyone has a fabulous rest of the day. It's still weird to think that it is only about 4pm there!
Love from France,
Dena

Last Night in Rolla

Well, today was my last night in Rolla. :( It started off with some bad news. I woke up only to find out the restaurant we were going to for lunch was closed. Sad day! Oh well. I went to visit my grandma instead. Then I bought some used books for planes and trains (and automobiles haha) that I can just throw away after I read them. Then lunch at Panera. Then back to packing! Actually, I picked Cody up from work first. I got the rest of my things from Walmart. And then finished packing. There was a lot more left than I thought. But I think I've got it all done. Right now, I'm putting all my new music on my iPhone so I can have stuff to do on the plane and during the layovers tomorrow. I still need to pick out the DVDs that I want to take, though. I just remembered that! Shoot! Hopefully I can go to bed soon (and actually sleep). We're leaving Rolla at 7:30 in the morning, so I'm going to wake up early to get one last shower in. I'm going to miss my bed and shower so much! My parents, Cody, and I are meeting Stephanie and Tony at IHOP at 9:30. It's really close to the airport, so it'll be nice to get some time together to just talk.

14 hours till my plane leaves...

Dena

More packing...

I have been so busy yesterday and today! I was so tired last night that I had to go to bed instead of sharing what I've been doing. Yesterday, I went to walmart and got most of the stuff I need. There are still 2 or 3 things I've discovered I needed so I'll go back tomorrow. Today, I woke up early to say bye to my grandma in Salem, went to lunch, and then let the packing begin! I took a break to have my last El Rodeo experience until I get back. It was fabulous. :) Marty and Larry met us there, so I could also say goodbye to them. After we got back, I really got to packing. I got most everything together. My mom put everything in those bags where you get all the air out with a vacuum. Now we just have to stuff them in the suitcases and get the little stuff done. I can hopefully get it all done early afternoon tomorrow so I can have a great last night in town!! Cody will be back in town tomorrow afternoon, so I'm looking forward to seeing him for a while, too. I'd much rather hang out with him and my family than worrying about getting all of my packing done.

38 hours till my plane leaves...

Dena

Packing...

I finally began packing! Let me tell you, packing for 5 months is not an easy task. Plus, I just found out that I can only check in one bag. This definitely throws everything off. But I'll make it work! Hopefully I can get most of the packing done tomorrow. I want to definitely be done by Thursday, with only the little things left to be packed Friday and Saturday morning. It's getting so close!! Waiting for my visa gets more nerve racking by the minute, though. It's all going to work out. :)

Bon soir!
Dena

Getting things accomplished

I think I may have actually accomplished quite a bit today! I made a list of everything I would like to pack (though I may not have room for it all), found my international health insurance card, registered my ISIC card, and did tons of research (mostly about places I'd like to travel to). I think I'm going to get a French phone once I get there. It would make communicating and getting around much easier.

Here's some info about the first few days of my trip:
I am leaving January 16th at 1:55PM.
I will arrive in Paris around 10AM (France time).
My train leaves 3 hours later (I think).
It takes about 2 1/2 hours by TGV from Paris to Angers.
Then ANGERS!
Once I get there, there will be a welcome team from ESSCA waiting for me. They will help me go shopping for things I need and get a bank account set up. Basically, they'll just help me get around Angers my first few days and help me get acclimated.
Orientation begins January 19th, and then classes begin on January 25th.

I feel really ready. The only thing I am nervous about is my Visa getting here on time. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!

I'm going to St. Louis tomorrow to hang out with my sister. On Tuesday, it'll be back to preparing for my trip. I will most likely get my packing started, but most importantly I need to do my laundry!
Well. It's off to bed. I have a busy day tomorrow.
Sweet Dreams!
Dena

This should be interesting

So I'm not really sure how well I'll keep up with this or who will really look at it regularly, but it's worth a shot. :) I just wanted a way to keep track of everything I experience next semester and be able to keep everyone in the loop of where I am. Hopefully I'll remember to write every time I do something interesting or go somewhere new. And of course post new pictures. I guess the next step would be to tell people that I'm doing this! All for now. :) I'm still trying to work out the kinks.