It's Springtime!!

Well, the spring weather has definitely arrived! The weather here has been absolutely gorgeous the past few weeks! Today it reached over 80 degrees and is pretty warm. The warm weather is making me excited about finishing my semester here and heading back home. I'm looking forward to the summer in Omaha with grilling out, going to the lake (okay, so really it's more of a park), and being with my friends from home again.

I am also excited about what the rest of the semester here holds. ...Okay take that back, I am looking forward to some of the things that the semester holds! :) (Final exams aren't really much to look forward to, you know what I mean?) I'm looking forward to spending some more time with people and learning what the French do when the weather gets warmer. I hope that I get to spend some time in the mountains!! I hope that, in these last seven weeks, I continue to push myself to work on my French and to get as much as I can from the French culture and being here.

One cultural thing that I thought was kind of interesting was the magical day when everyone realized it was spring! It wasn't really a single day but something definitely changed in the atmosphere around town last week. It was like everyone suddenly realized that the the weather was beautiful and they should be out in it more! All of the restaurants have pulled out their tables, chairs, umbrellas, and lights for outdoor seating. The squares and parks are getting more and more full of people at lunchtimes and in the afternoon. The stores have their doors wide open. The apartments and houses have their cool windows open to the breeze and fresh air. I have always loved the springtime but I think that I love the springtime in France even more! I will always remember this spring.

Here are some pictures from things I did last week.

I hope that things are going well in all of your lives! I look forward to hearing from you!

Love from France,

Ashlie