L'orientation

Orientation has officially begun in Strasbourg, which means three hours of French class a day for the next two weeks.  Actually, we have been talking about it, and are all unclear about whether or not the classes are just for those two weeks or for the entire semester.  For now, though, we listen to our 40ish professor talk to us about whatever the heck he feels like for 3 hours.  To give you a random sampling of what he talked about yesterday, he mentioned: the Italian addiction to cell phones, what he calls "la peste;" his sentiment that the French tend to be anti-American because they feel that they owe us so much that they will always be indebted to us; the lifespan and deterioration of sandstone- yes sandstone-;  and his thought that, if you think Americans are not ready for an African American president, the French may never be ready.  Apparently, you can count the number of black local politicians on one hand here, which is really too bad.   So after listening to his rant for three hours, we got drinks at a café (tea for me and coffee for my friends) and sat in the aforementioned café bar, which, at noon, was teeming with old men, and watched American music videos, some good (Disturbia and Miss Independent) and ohsobad (The Pussycat Dolls, need I say more?).  One thing I've noticed at French restaurants is that, rather than harass you and try to rush you through your meal, French garçons give you time to enjoy your meal (sometimes too much time, and you practically have to hunt them down to get your check).  This can be hard for Americans to stomach, since we are CONSTANTLY on the go.  It has been nice to have the time to sit back, enjoy my tea, and enjoy the company, so I really can't complain.

I am continuing to settle in here, more and more so every day with each subsequent errand I run.  Since I have class from 9-12 every morning, I have the afternoons free to get errands done, so my friends and I always have an account to open, a form to drop off, something to get at the store, etc.  I opened my French bank account yesterday, which will be very helpful, since you need it to do almost anything here.  And luckily, this particular bank also has locations in Spain, so I won't have to open an entirely separate account when I get there.  I turned in my dossier for my student I.D., which is almost as important as my bank card, so hopefully it will be ready in a few days.  Of course, I have my phone, which has been useful so far in coordinating with people, and most importantly, my Internet works, and I have been able to Skype with family and friends.  That has really helped, because I've been feeling myself getting a little more homesick this week, so a combination of staying busy during the day and having the ability to Skype at night has been great!  And I'll probably use the next few afternoons to start thinking about what classes I want to take and start looking at fares to get to some of the places we've decided to travel to.  

I miss all of you, and I hope everything is well in your neck of the woods!

Sending you my love,

Kristen