the beginning of finalities.
We've been v. spoiled these past few days.
Last Thursday, our aristocratic, high class, in-town coordinator, Anne-Marie (also affectionately referred to as our "French mama"), hosted our last and final group dinner where I feasted on rabbit, fine cheeses, and chocolate mousse gâteau that was out of this world.
On Friday, we were hosted by the Seattle-Nantes Sister Association for a big Thanksgiving dinner, and although I'm not really a fan of Thanksgiving food (except for mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie), I thought the sweet gesture extended on behalf of the association was super nice. And for the record, cranberries do not exist in France. And oddly enough, this was the first of my two Thanksgiving meals here (we have another one on Thursday)! I barely celebrated Thanksgiving in the States, let alone actually eating turkey on Thanksgiving Day.
Saturday was spent visiting the Pays de la Loire region for our third and final field trip with the program. We visited the Château de Chenonceau (beautiful, per usual, but not my favourite château) and went underground to the caves of Saumer to learn about wine cellars, and following that, we had a wine tasting party. I tried sparkling rose wine - which is essentially champagne in the US, more or less - and it was absolutely divine; I believe that it is a specialty in this region.
With officially a month to go until my time is over in Nantes, I'm beginning to realize the reality of my situation: I leave Europe really soon. And over the next few weeks, I will be saying goodbye to several international people that I'm certain that I will never see again. And the sheer thought of this makes me tearful and upset, because I have finally grown accustomed to my life here - the place, the people, and the essence. It seems incomprehensible that I will never be in France with these American friends again, that I will never talk to my international classmates again, and that there will be things and sights that I will probably never see again ...
Truly, this is the beginning of the end.
I try not to think about all of this, but with each approaching day, it's impossible not to.
I feel like I'm running out of time - and I most certainly am! With that said, I've decided to disavow any hope I had with returning with a decently funded bank account, and blow the rest of my money on experiencing Nantes, going out, and traveling. How often am I in Europe like this, right?
Last Thursday, our aristocratic, high class, in-town coordinator, Anne-Marie (also affectionately referred to as our "French mama"), hosted our last and final group dinner where I feasted on rabbit, fine cheeses, and chocolate mousse gâteau that was out of this world.
On Friday, we were hosted by the Seattle-Nantes Sister Association for a big Thanksgiving dinner, and although I'm not really a fan of Thanksgiving food (except for mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie), I thought the sweet gesture extended on behalf of the association was super nice. And for the record, cranberries do not exist in France. And oddly enough, this was the first of my two Thanksgiving meals here (we have another one on Thursday)! I barely celebrated Thanksgiving in the States, let alone actually eating turkey on Thanksgiving Day.
Saturday was spent visiting the Pays de la Loire region for our third and final field trip with the program. We visited the Château de Chenonceau (beautiful, per usual, but not my favourite château) and went underground to the caves of Saumer to learn about wine cellars, and following that, we had a wine tasting party. I tried sparkling rose wine - which is essentially champagne in the US, more or less - and it was absolutely divine; I believe that it is a specialty in this region.
With officially a month to go until my time is over in Nantes, I'm beginning to realize the reality of my situation: I leave Europe really soon. And over the next few weeks, I will be saying goodbye to several international people that I'm certain that I will never see again. And the sheer thought of this makes me tearful and upset, because I have finally grown accustomed to my life here - the place, the people, and the essence. It seems incomprehensible that I will never be in France with these American friends again, that I will never talk to my international classmates again, and that there will be things and sights that I will probably never see again ...
Truly, this is the beginning of the end.
I try not to think about all of this, but with each approaching day, it's impossible not to.
I feel like I'm running out of time - and I most certainly am! With that said, I've decided to disavow any hope I had with returning with a decently funded bank account, and blow the rest of my money on experiencing Nantes, going out, and traveling. How often am I in Europe like this, right?