So the pictures uploaded backwards, so the surprise is spoiled. But this is Isabelle, me, Jacky and Orian mid-chicken harvesting. As you can see, Jacky is ecstatic about my choice to photograph our activity.
Limousine is a type of cattle, the kind that Isabelle raises. According to her, it's the best tasting steak in the world. (Phonetically, LEE MOOZ AN).
This is a shot of the farm. To the right are the sheep, to the left are the cows, and the goats and cheese room are behind me.
This is a picture of Vouhenans, the little village where the farm is. I bike there, so I get to see lots of pretty views like this.

I'm off to Besançon for two days with Mathilde, then Berlin on Tuesday. I have no idea what is going to happen !!!!

Sam

Hi hi hi!

I feel like I tell time more by the seasons and the moon than anything else. So when I say that I wore my winter coat today, that means that I've been here a while. Only a month really, but it seems like a lot has happened to me.

This is just an update to tell you that everything is exceptional. People always smile at me and say hello, as if I am not this new, weird person in the halls anymore, but rather a permanent fixture within them. I still stand out because of my clothes, as I don't wear chic black everyday, but for the most part all the teachers treat me as if I've been here for a long time.

The only thing is I still stick out because I don't eat in the cafeteria. I mean first and foremost because it's cafeteria food, but more than that it's usually pretty meat-centric, so when I get the meal without meat I end up with some plain rice and a side salad. Because I live right next to the school, it's easier just to go home and cook myself something scrumptious. I think I miss out on some bonding, but overall it's okay.

I asked if I could sit on the freshmen Spanish class, and today was my first lesson; I can't really express how excited I am to finally be taking deliberate action to learn a third language. Valerie, a super nice teacher, told me she'd be sure to put me with her worst class (even so, they've been studying Spanish for two years already) so that I would get lots of practice and repetition. In front of the class, she asked me my name, and I didn't even know how to say 'my name is Sam' because I was so nervous. It's nice, however, to interact with the students in a different capacity than language teacher; I get to be a student, too! I got a book from the library called L'espagnol pour Les Nuls (get it?) so I'm going to try to supplement the classes with rudimentary learning as well. Nonetheless, I am very excited. It'll also help solidify my French grammar too, as the class is a Spanish class taught in French. You should see my notes-- a jumble of three languages that no one but probably I could understand.

The farm is going really well. Isabelle and Jacky have sort of adopted me. Saturday I left with cheese, apples, and a full tummy. I also got stuck in the rain on my bike. It was what I like to call a character builder. I go back tomorrow to work with Elise, a farm hand whose family has also taken me in. I usually help her with the goats from 630 to noon then we go eat at her house. It's really fun.

Volleyball is also fun. My shoulder has begun to let me know that I'm over using it, however. I'm trying to do some strengthening exercises to make it less mad at me for playing so much. Hopefully it gets better with time.

And Berlin in a week!

Et voilà, all is well. Spanish, farming, volleyball, fall. As you can see, my life is happily uninteresting. I feel content and comfortable. I'm off to the open air market to buy some fresh veggies and cheese.

Love,
Sam

FALL!!!

Hi, everyone!

I owe you an update, I know. But I was waiting until my life got more exciting, then it got too exciting (joke) and I didn't have time to update. So, here it is:

I have officially been here for three whole weeks, whoa! And now, it's absolutely fall. It was 2° C today. Just cold enough to warrant a snuggly fleece but not cold enough for gloves and a hat. This morning I showed my class pictures on my computer. Each time I go into a class, I introduce myself (it's easier with the lower classes to also use pictures) and then they ask me any questions. After the pictures, I always get: 'Does you brother have a girlfriend?' And after I introduce myself I always get: 'Do you have a boyfriend' and 'How old are you?'. While it's flattering, I'm not sure that they're retaining any of the things I'm saying that don't have to do with the dating scene. You win some, you lose some. It's terribly entertaining to hear them speak English. I also really enjoy speaking to them and trying to communicate. I always have to be sure that they know I can speak French so that they don't talk about me in French.

This weekend was great, too. I went to a goat farm -- the sister in law of one of the teachers at the school. Hamid has been so wonderful to me. He's sort of adopted me as his own child. He took me to Isabelle's farm and sat with me and helped explain why I was there (I accidentally told them I wanted money for working on the farm). And then he left, and they took me home. But he's just a very sweet, genuine man. I then fed the cows, helped tag a new baby, and moved the hay all around. Then I got to help vaccinate the sheep against some sort of hoof disease. They have chickens too, and they want me to help harvest them. Thanks to Megan I have experience with that now, so I'll be helping this coming weekend. Tomorrow I'm going back to milk the goats and make cheese. This weekend I sold cheese at a market for twelve hours!! Some people find it difficult to understand my accent -- it's such a small town that it's rare to find someone who's maternal language is not French. They don't expect me to talk funny.

We have a vacation coming up in two weeks, and I am going to BERLIN! My friend Claire has a friend there, and I do too, so we're going to be there for about six days. Then I'm going to spend one day in Switzerland, then back to work. I am also still planning to be a delegate at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit in December, so that will be my next trip. Then, for Christmas, it's down to Morocco, Italy and/or Greece. I'll keep you posted as to what I decide! One girl is going to an ice hotel in Sweden, doesn't that sound cool? Literally?

Tonight I'm going to cook dinner with Claire and Rebecca, American and English respecitvely, so that should be fun. It'll be nice to speak in English again. Doesn't happen very often (which is better for my French, I know...). This Friday I'm going back to Besançon to have the last portion of my orientation. They're going to teach us how to teach I think. That will be nice. I really like some of the assistants who live futher away from me, so it'll be nice to see them again. And we're planning on coordinating visits at the orientation and such.

So there is a very long update! It's not as interesting as I had hoped, but it's the truth. Maybe I'll start making things up, maybe then I'll have lots of visitors!

Oh, and I'm thinking about doing the Paris half marathon in April, weeee! Anna's trying to talk me into the full marathon, but I'm so scared....

Okay. I miss and love you all. And I think of you everyday.

Adoringly,
Sam

And, PS: I get internet in my room in less than a week! So I'll be able to upload pictures at will. You know, the ones I took on Photobooth of my first day of school. And I'll have an UNLIMITED phone that dials UNLIMITED to ANYWHERE in the WORLD. So expect some calls. I'll try to respect the time zone differences, but I can't make any promises -- I might get too excited. My mobile number is 06 37 22 94 08 if you're interested in calling or texting me in the mean time. And my other number will be up soon.

PICTURES

Bonjour chers amis!

What a weekend, huh? Is it fall there yet? It's starting to be here, little by little. I finished the books The Hours and Devil in the White City this weekend--I'd recommend them both, but for different reasons. Now I'm going to start reading in French, which will inevitably slow down my usually fast pace.

So I went to Besançon this weekend (also known to some as Baykwan). It's a city about an hour and a half from Lure by train. Much bigger, and very charming. A river cuts through it and everything is centered around it. Beautiful bike paths with French families pedaling along, and cobblestone piétons, which are simply walking paths. I did a lot of window shopping, as almost nothing is open on Sundays, which nice because no one is bothering you while you look at shiny new things. I stayed in a little place called Hotel Regina. Very cute. I wish I could upload pictures, but I'm not at that level of sophistication yet with the school computer--I can't even get on Facebook, it's prohibited.

After I got back to Lure and my apartment, it really felt like I was coming back to my own little cozy home. Because my studio is so small, it started to feel homey very quickly, which is great. Lure itself is a very small French town. It has one main road that I would guess is less than a mile long. I work at the lycée and my apartment is almost directly attached (which will be nice in the winter I think). Many of the teachers live outside the town center and have lots of land. All the houses are so beautiful--in touch with nature in a way that houses in the US are not. And all the cars are exactly what you would think, tiny little Euro cars that fit down very skinny Euro roads. The landscape itself is similar to the midwest, with a bit more elevation--the Alps are merely two hours away. Fall hasn't quite come yet, but the trees are changing little by little and it's beautiful to watch during a long train ride.

It's funny how, in a new place, the simplest things feel like accomplishments. When you're speaking in a second language, just leaving your apartment and going to buy some apples feels like a great feat. Or, just getting to Besançon was such an accomplishment that I didn't even feel like I had to do anything once I got there. I had two people ask if I was German, and one who was sure I was British.

Oh! Friday, I had a man chase me down on the street to ask if he could "faire ma connaissance," which simply means he wanted to make my acquaintance. It was flattering, and I was so surprised that I was actually speechless. He asked if he could walk with me and we walked and talked; he said he was a pompier--I had to look that up later--which is a fireman. He asked for my phone number, but we all know how that works out for me, so as a compromise he ended up giving me his instead. And an Algerian man, while I was traveling, asked me to coffee, but I again declined. Maybe I'll say yes to someone just to see what the French dating world is like. Mostly, I'm afraid that I'll sound like an idiot--which I will--because I can't articulate myself as well in French and can't convey any depth of intelligence, really. Perhaps I'm not giving myself enough credit, but I wouldn't want to have lunch with me, someone who smiles and nods more than she does anything else. I'm also afraid that any utterance of the word 'oui' is code for green light go go go let's get married!!

Okay, well that's enough of an update for now. The internet told me that my backpack is set to arrive tomorrow, so we will see if I'll finally become a whole person again. And if it is in any way near the state of my other bag, all hell will absolutely break loose.

à la prochaine,

Sam

Good news, bad news

Hello again!!

I have received one of my bags: completely demolished. What began as a regular piece of luggage, with rolling and handle capabilities, is now a broken down, poor little bag. It no longer has wheels, they were sacraficed in the journey. The handle had been ripped off, and taped to the front with duct tape. There was a huge rip in the front, which was also patched. But, when it arrived, I saw none of that. I saw simply one half of my precious luggage; and I was happy. Unhappy, however, to find out that my other bag, part of my heart, my backpack, was still somewhere, floating in a liminal land. It needs its home, it needs me there to love it. I'm sure it misses me. On the internevet, unfortunately, it still says: tracing; check back later. Not a good sign. Maybe if we all will it back to me, it will show up!!

Last night, I had a wonderful time! In the staff lounge, I saw a sign advertising volleyball with the word 'loisir' beside it, which means leisure. Some fun, not serious volleyball. I asked about it, and before I knew it two other professors had arranged a pick up for me and I was going to be playing at eight o'clock. In my chacos, of course, because my running shoes are also in my backpack. (I don't want to talk about it). I borrowed a pair of shoes from Joel, a man, because my feet are apparently huge. Okay, I knew they were huge. But Nhamid brought me a pair of 7.5s. I mean, come on. Anyway, I felt like I was having a growth spurt or something, tripping over my feet a bit. But it worked out. And they thought I was apparently good enough to play on their team that travels!! They got third out of fifteen teams last year, so it could be really fun.

And today, I hope for my bag. I have a meeting with Carolin today to hopefully get a bike and go to the super marché.

Love,
Sam

Is this too boring to post? Likely. But I don't have any French lovers or exotic European trips to write about. You just wait though, it's going to get so juicy I'll have to censor it*

*That's probably an exaggeration.

Im in France?

Bonjour, tout le monde!

Against all odds, I am in Lure, France as we speak. I had this great idea that I would describe, in painstaking detail all the trials and tribulations that I went through to get here but, not surprisingly, I am too worn out to do so. Instead, a recap:

Arrived at JFK to the most stressful terminal I have ever witnessed. There were hundreds (no exaggeration) of people trying to get checked in, their bags checked, etc etc etc. After spending 1.5 hours in line to get my bags checked (bags that the man was SURE were going to Paris), I got into line with everyone else to funnel through a security check that had one, yes just one, functioning checkpoint. After arriving 2.5 hours early for my flight, I found myself at the gate with a mere fifteen minutes to spare, already boarding. I thought that was the end of the sweaty, stressful traveling story. I ate some trail mix.

Little did I know it was just the beginning. To summarize: my bags were left in Dublin, I had to go through Irish customs two different times, I had to go to three different people to get a metro ticket in Paris, I missed my train to Lure by one minute after literally running from one train station to another, my bags will take three days to be delivered, I havent been able to check my email or anything like that.

In short, its been an adventure.

Well, you know I dont like being so negative, butI had to blurt all that out so someone, somewhere, may feel sorry for me, and nowI can move on.

My french is rusty, but two people have told me I speak very well (I think theyre surprised an American can speak French at all). The high school where I work is very big, almost as big as Kenyon. It has automatic doors and is filled with students who smoke outside and always seem to be the perfect amount of bored.

I have managed to find the most important store yet, the store that makes all my travel problems disappear: Le Fromagerie (The Cheese-ery). After I got a lot of brie for a mere 2 euros, all the stress melted away. I had a croissant, some brie, and an apple for dinner. Mmmm.

So I hope hope hope my bags arrive today, and I can change out of the clothes Ive been wearing now for four days. If not, cest la vie I guess.

I miss everyone, and I hope all is well. I would love to hear how fall is starting out...

Writing a blog feels weirdlyself involved, but its the easiest way to update the most people at one time. I hope youll check back and see if my life in France goes more smoothly from here on out. Im pretty sure it has to.

à la prochaine,
Sam