bon weekend!

i'm off to paris! we just wrapped up our first week at l'institut de touraine where we're taking our intensive language courses. we have one more week before "graduating" from the institute and obtaining our first half-credit from bucknell. we had our first DELF preparation class (the DELF is the french language exam that foreign students must pass to verify their fluency — kind of like the TOEFL for foreign students who wish to study in the u.s.) which seems a little superfluous (your average SAT prep class) but not so bad. i also started my art history/art criticism class at the actual university and it seems like it will be pretty interesting and not too much work. i start my class "enterprise for humane and responsible business" next thursday.

my host mom made la brioche for breakfast this morning which i was informed is best consumed with a generous serving of nutella (my newest obsession). being a vegetarian at the house has been very easy since my mom has been great about serving me salmon and shrimp in lieu of chicken and red meat, though eating out for lunch has been a little tough... let's just say nutella has been filling more than a few gaps in my diet. when the group decided on chicken sandwiches today (where the meat was literally shaved off a dead animal hanging behind the counter with an electric razor — disgusting) i opted for a nutella panini instead. dessert for lunch? maybe not the healthiest choice but cheap and very, very yummy.

it's definitely been a busy first week but a lovely introduction to french people and food alike. tomorrow morning we'll be taking the train to paris for some sightseeing, shopping, and general celebration of having survived our first week. my dad and i just finished nailing down some of the details for his visit in february (paris, barcelona, and lisbon, here we come!) so i've got lots to look forward to!

sunday brunch and such

took a quick spin around tours today in the FREEZING cold and stopped at the bucknell apartment for more galettes des rois. had brunch at 12:30 which consisted of smoked salmon, a strange potato concoction, and the usual bread and cheese. dinner (circa 7:30) was shrimp, pasta, a seafood medley (which none of the kids, including me, were daring enough to try), the bread and cheese course, and yogurt for dessert (i opted out — yogurt freaks me out). skyped with mom, dad, and reilly and i would say it was nice to see them but their webcam makes them look like watercolors and occasionally even still-lifes. i start intensive language classes at the institut de touraine tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (high school all over again!) which i'm not particularly looking forward to. that said, can't wait to go to london in a couple weeks — and word has it lady gaga will be there in february so i might need to plan another visit as well!