à Pau, enfin...

Our Paris trip ended with visits to three separate castles, which were absolutely incredible. The drive to Pau from Azay-le-Rideau, a whopping 9 hours, was a great time to recup...except I was so ecited that I just spent the whole time journaling instead :) When we finally arrived at the dorms at l'Universtié de Pau, all our host parents were waiting for us. My host mum H came to pick me up and then took me to the store with her so we could buy yogurt for a yogurt cake. Mmmmmm, yogurt cake :) I got settled into my new room after she gave me a tour, and she started cooking dinner. We ate outside because the day was gorgeous--probably 72˚--and we had bread and foie gras, avocadoes with balsamic vinegar, Spanish sausages, and a pork loin sautéed with bacon and sundried tomatoes. It was pretty spectacular. 

The next day we started orientation. H drove me to school, dropped me off, and told me I'd have to find my way home--probably a good thing since that'll be my most trusted form of transportation. Orientation started, we met the students who didn't go to Paris with us, we ate in the cafeteria in a big conglomerate of Americanism, and then we toured Pau. We took the bus--one of only a few public bus experiences I've had--into downtown, which is really close to my host family's house. The town is so cute--it's really old, with cobbled streets and boulangeries and patisseries everywhere. There is a château that was built in 1450! And you can see the Pyrenees Mountains from downtown. There are palm trees everywhere, and the weather is really balmy and beautiful. I'm so thrilled to be here :) 

I live with H and her two children (a third lives in the Alps) in a darling Spanish-tiled house (you know how I love Spanish tiles!) near downtown Pau. She's an interior decorator, so they house is gorgeous and charming. The weather is beautiful, the mountains and Spain and the beach are so near--it's Utopia! The language barrier, too, hasn't been too much of a barrier--more of a suggestion of difficulty. I'm having the time of my life :) 

Our elective classes started today. I'm taking French Culture, which sounds like it's going to be a really non-traditional discussion/argument class. I'm pretty thrilled about it. Then, in October we'll have our language placement exams and we'll begin our intensive French classes (past students have called them "French boot camp") and our electives will only take place once a week. The schedule takes a bit of getting used to (as does the bus system :|), but I know I'll learn to love it here.