In 5 days I will be returning home. I am so ecstatic to see my family, Eric, and my friends, all of whom I have missed tremendously!! This week I have been so excited and anxious to come home that it made it difficult at times to focus on studying for my final exams. On Wednesday, I helped to curve that feeling by getting out my suit cases and starting to pack a few things. (I really hope that all of my things fit in my suitcases!! :)) It was really fun that I was close enough to coming home that I could start packing!!
Last night my host mom made dinner for myself and a few friends here. It was a good night of just hanging out being together before we leave. By about last Friday, I realized that I really need to make sure that I truly take the time to "say goodbye" to France and all of the wonderful people that I have met here. With very large finals this week and my excitement to come, I didn't want to simply leave without taking the time to say goodbye. At the same time, I was so excited to be going home!!! :)
This morning I woke up and it is my last Sunday here in Grenoble. Even though the church here is large and I do not know everyone, I have definitely met some priceless people. Some of my friends are gone today due to a convention in a nearby town but, thankfully, I will see them later this week to say goodbye. I woke up with the realization of how much I really am going to miss living here.
I am going to miss the boulangeries filled with really yummy fresh made bread. I am going to miss the beautiful architecture and the aesthetics of their cities. I am going to miss the train system and being able to ride the train for a few hours through the French countryside to experience another great French town or even a different country! I am very much going to miss hearing the French language and having the opportunity to speak it (no matter how rocky my attempt may be). I am going to miss seeing the mountains! I am going to miss the cafes and having the preference to sit outdoors at a restaurant when the weather is nice. I am going to miss greeting each other with the "bisous" (kiss on each cheek) ... even though it has often been a very awkward cultural thing, I have gotten used to it. And most of all, I am going to miss the wonderful people that I have met here who have shown me what the French culture is.
I will never forget my experience here in France. It has definitely given me perspective not only on the French culture but, my own culture, the vast geographical size of our country, and the world as a whole. God, thank you for giving me this amazing opportunity to have lived here. I have learned so much and am grateful beyond words for the experience!
So, France, I will be missing you! For those of you back home, I'll see you on Saturday!!!!!!!!
From France,
Ashlie
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
My experience with French politics...
Well, Sunday night proved to be exciting!
First some background information: Sunday was the final round of the 2007 Presidential elections in France. The two candidates were Nicholas Sarkozy from the UMP party and Segolene Royal of the Socialist party. I had heard the election summarized as, "There is no good choice because Sarkozy is a fascist and Royal is incompetent!" Sarkozy had said some interesting things and Royal had big dreams of what the state could do for the people but no way to make it happen. A large portion of the French population was undecided until really late in the campaigns.
At school on Friday, one of the students from Canada was talking about the upcoming election and said, "You should get out of France for the weekend! (mind you, it was a long weekend as well) If Sarkozy is elected, there are going to be all kinds of riots! ..." We all kind of laughed at him saying, "even if there are demonstrations, it'll be fine! Don't worry!"
So Sunday night: I was a few blocks away at my friend Madison's house working on a paper and left at about 10:30. It was announced around 9 that Sarkozy had won with 53% of the vote. I was walking back home and was on the phone with Eric. Everything was fine and dandy and I had forgotten to expect any kind of response to the election. Then I turned the corner by the tram stop next to my house... I didn't see any angry rioters but they must not have been far because during the second half of my walk, I saw at least 4 groups of 15 policemen dressed in full garb! They had black helmets, body shields, and BIG guns, and were patrolling the streets like an army! It was scary! Eric was getting worried too because I had kind of stopped talking to him as I tried to figure out what was going on and home to get home safely. I finally get into my building after following one of the groups of policemen down my street. My host sister was home and was kind of freaking out about it too. We watched from our window as a few more groups of policemen and 3-4 fire trucks came down our streets. It was quite the rush! There was not any damage done to our streets but in the Grenoble area that night, around 45 cars were burned and in all of France, there were over 750 cars burned and almost 600 people arrested! All because people were not happy that Sarkozy was voted to be president!
It was quite an experience! Perhaps I'll rethink taking that "Politics in France" course next semester... It could be interesting to see what happens!
First some background information: Sunday was the final round of the 2007 Presidential elections in France. The two candidates were Nicholas Sarkozy from the UMP party and Segolene Royal of the Socialist party. I had heard the election summarized as, "There is no good choice because Sarkozy is a fascist and Royal is incompetent!" Sarkozy had said some interesting things and Royal had big dreams of what the state could do for the people but no way to make it happen. A large portion of the French population was undecided until really late in the campaigns.
At school on Friday, one of the students from Canada was talking about the upcoming election and said, "You should get out of France for the weekend! (mind you, it was a long weekend as well) If Sarkozy is elected, there are going to be all kinds of riots! ..." We all kind of laughed at him saying, "even if there are demonstrations, it'll be fine! Don't worry!"
So Sunday night: I was a few blocks away at my friend Madison's house working on a paper and left at about 10:30. It was announced around 9 that Sarkozy had won with 53% of the vote. I was walking back home and was on the phone with Eric. Everything was fine and dandy and I had forgotten to expect any kind of response to the election. Then I turned the corner by the tram stop next to my house... I didn't see any angry rioters but they must not have been far because during the second half of my walk, I saw at least 4 groups of 15 policemen dressed in full garb! They had black helmets, body shields, and BIG guns, and were patrolling the streets like an army! It was scary! Eric was getting worried too because I had kind of stopped talking to him as I tried to figure out what was going on and home to get home safely. I finally get into my building after following one of the groups of policemen down my street. My host sister was home and was kind of freaking out about it too. We watched from our window as a few more groups of policemen and 3-4 fire trucks came down our streets. It was quite the rush! There was not any damage done to our streets but in the Grenoble area that night, around 45 cars were burned and in all of France, there were over 750 cars burned and almost 600 people arrested! All because people were not happy that Sarkozy was voted to be president!
It was quite an experience! Perhaps I'll rethink taking that "Politics in France" course next semester... It could be interesting to see what happens!
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