Quote of the Day

A meal without cheese is like a day without the sun or a kiss without a mustache.
-French Proverb

And the countdown begins....

The first day of Advent has arrived once again, meaning there are less than four weeks until Christmas! To mark the beginning of the holiday season, Dr. Lynch and Debbie bought a nativity scene for the dining room and Ed constructed a lovely Advent wreath from empty wine bottles (we've really caught on to the "Go Green" iniatives here at Le Prieure) and some natural foliage he found outside. Though I do miss the holiday jingles I'd be listening to on 97.1 fm if I were home right now, I've enjoyed recognizing the start of Advent without being surrounded by all the commericial ideas of Christmas.


Are you doing anything special to get ready for the holidays this year? I just love the idea of performing 24 acts of kindness every day through Christmas!

Lourdes

Today the group journeyed to Lourdes, France, the place where our Blessed Mother appeared to a young Bernadette on 18 separate occasions. It is said that at the time in which the apparitions occurred, the church officials didn't believe Bernadette. It was not until she told her parish priest that she had heard the woman talking to her say that she was the Immaculate Conception--an explanation that such a young girl who had not yet finished her catechism would be able to give--that her story was believed.

At the spot in which Mary appeared to Bernadette came forth a spring whose water has been known to have cured thousands of people. Millions continue to visit Lourdes each year to offer their intentions at the grotto and find healing in the baths.

Wanting to take part in this, I mustered up the courage to bathe in the [frigid] Lourdes water today and found it to be surprisingly rejuvenating. While I have no serious ailment for which I needed to ask healing for, the bath was undeniably a breathtaking experience that I will always remember.

Rendre Grace (Give Thanks)

I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving! We had our very own celebration here in Ambialet...the group was happily joined by almost everyone who we have grown close to since our arrival. If you take a look at this short clip, you'll be quickly introduced to most of the people who were in attendance. Present were people from five different countries altogether; France, England, Russia, Canada, and America were all represented last night! For some of our guests, this was their first Thanksgiving, and a very special one it was indeed.

Our feast was prepared by the oh-so-talented Bernard and included turkey with a sweet apricot and white raisin stuffing, corn, salad, cranberry sauce (courtesy of Mrs. Roche who had it shipped here from the States just for the occasion), French bread, 10 variations of cheese, pumpkin pie, and lots of vin.

Dinner was followed by music and merriment in the stone room, which was historically the place where the friars in the Middle Ages ate their dinners in total silence. One might say that we broke that tradition of silence with the help of Peter, who led the singing with his guitar playing. (We were all pretty excited when Shane decided to join in too).

The holiday, while certainly much different from my typical Thanksgiving back home, was undeniably a memorable one. My life has been so blessed by the people I was surrounded by last night that I really couldn't imagine a better way to celebrate our time together.

Bienvenue, Weekend!

It's a Friday night in Ambialet and I am celebrating the weekend by watching Julie & Julia with some of the crew. I'm loving this because:
A. I'm in France watching a movie that [partially] takes place in France. I walked the same Parisian streets as the infamous Julia did just two weeks ago.
B. One of the two stars of this movie is Amy Adams, whose role in Enchanted seems to have given reason for people to serenade me as I wait on their tables back in The States.
C. The movie is based on Julie's attempt to complete all of the recipes in Julia Child's cookbook in just one year and publish an account of her experience in an online blog. In many regards, her experimental blogging is precisely what I'm trying to do. And just like Julie, I find pleasure in knowing that you (whoever you are, wherever you are) are taking the time to read this right now!

The Julie/Julia Project


Julia Child's kitchen in the American History Museum. Taken during a trip to D.C. with my best friend in August 2009, I knew this picture would come in handy someday.

P.S. The movie just got better. "A Bushel and a Peck" is being played in the background.
P.P.S. "A Bushel and a Peck" was my first favorite song ever.

Good Friend and a Glass of Wine

This evening, the one and only John Roche led us in a delightful wine sampling as a precursor to dinner. John (Assistant Professor) has done so much for the group since our arrival in September; we are tremendously lucky to have him here with us. He is one of the most generous people I know, ever-giving of his time, energy, and resources to ensure that all of the students and professors are having the best experience possible. Thank you for everything you do, John. You are truly appreciated.

P.S. You should check out John in all of his wine sampling glory right here!

"Every girl needs a good friend and a glass of wine."
LeAnn Rimes

Love Story

Once upon a time, there was a boy and a girl. In their younger years, they both wondered the crowded halls of Damascus High School, talking to each other on the way to their lockers at the beginning of the day and back to their buses at the end of it. Fast forward five and a half unforgettable years, and the boy flies to Europe to visit the girl. He bought tickets to Rome and back to Paris. On their first Friday in Paris together, the two visited some of the girl’s favorite places in the City of Lights, including Notre Dame de Paris, the Musee d’Orsay, and the Latin Quarter.

If that wasn’t enough, the two decided to take a twilight ride up the Eiffel Tower. From the tippy top, they could see one particularly bright spot beneath them. This light would just so happen to mark the place where their lives would soon change. After descending from the very top of Le Tour Eiffel, the two stopped to get dinner at Carrefour, the French take on Giant or Safeway, buying a five-star dinner that consisted of pre-made salads, French bread, and Nutella. After a picnic dinner in the Splendid Hotel that the boy had reserved for his stay, the two went to the balcony to admire the best view of the Eiffel Tower in all of Paris.

Now since this balcony was just barely large enough for one person to sit down on, the boy, being the gentleman that he has always been, let the girl sit down (on a towel, of course, so that she wouldn’t get cold) while he thoughtfully situated himself next to her from inside the room. It was around 11 o’clock when the Eiffel Tower shimmered as it does on every hour of the evening, and the girl noticed that the boy was on both of his knees. At first, she didn’t really think anything of it because of the foot-long height difference between the room and the window leading to the balcony. Then, before the girl had any idea of what was happening, one of the boy’s knees lifted from the ground and he asked her to marry him!

They’re going to live together happily ever after.

The trip of a lifetime.

It's been three weeks since my last post, and oh what a three weeks it has been. I have mastered the Parisian Metro system, walked the narrow streets of Rome in its entirety, and driven the length of France back to my home in Ambialet. In these past twenty days, I have made memories to last a lifetime with the best of friends and I am eternally grateful for each moment along the way.

Of everything I was able to see and experience in these past few weeks, I am most excited to announce to the world my engagement to my best friend and the love of my life. Thank you so much, Alek, for taking the time off from school to meet me in Europe (and for pulling off the amazing surprise without me having even the slightest clue). Our adventures together were better than anything else and I am absolutely thrilled at the idea of being able to spend the rest of my life with you.

To my friends and family back home: I fully intend to update this blog as frequently as possible with all of my best stories from Paris and Rome (and oh golly-gee-whiz is there a lot of them). If I fail to do a good job at this or am MIA for awhile, please forgive me. I still have a month left of classes here in Ambialet, as well as grad school applications to complete.

I miss you all bunches and love you lots,
Melanie

And we're off!

Today the group is en route to Paris! It will be about a ten hour or so drive to get there, but it will all be worth it because those who opted to drive will be detouring at Le Chateau d'Usse (aka: Sleeping Beauty's castle)! In fact, I'm supposed to be downstairs with all my things in just ten minutes!


We will be in Paris until the end of next week, when a few other students and I will be heading to Roma (happy shriek!) for our mid-semester break. Since I won't have much time to keep in touch with everyone during these next few weeks, I have decided to temporarily deactivate my facebook account.

xoxo

P.S. Don't worry, Mom, I'll send you an email to let you know we're safe in Paris as soon as I get the chance!

Mon reve est un voyage a Paris.

In just nine short hours, I will be taking my mid-term in French class. (Contrary to popular belief, we do have real classes here with real homework, real papers, and real tests). And at the moment, I'm finding it a whole lot easier to daydream about all things French (read: Paris) than to study for this test. If only I were getting a grade based purely on my appreciation for French culture, I'd be feeling a lot more confident right about now.

Photo courtesy of A Cup of Jo.

Conques

Today we visited the picturesque village of Conques. The town was orinally constructed between the 11th and 13th centuries and was made famous by religious pilgrims who came from far and wide to visit the Abbey of Saint Foy.




Had I been living during that time, I think I would have gladly made the treachorous journey to Saint Foy just so that I could stay in one of the storybook houses that cover the mountainside!

Albi

Today the group of us took our first official trip into the city of Albi. The day began at the local university where we met our French professor for the semester. Our classroom introduction was followed by tours given by one of six students who are currently attending the university. From my understanding, these students will be spending a considerable amount of time with us, as they are sort of adopting us for the semester to show us around the city. In exchange, they have been invited to the monastary and the trips we'll be going on from Ambialet. The girl who showed Becca and I around is also named Melanie...which, by the way, sounds much more delightful when pronounced with a French accent (but then again, what doesn't?). We were then given a tour of the city...we saw La Cathedrale Sainte-Cecile d'Albi (the video and pictures I took really don't do her justice) and the City Hall where everyone gets married by the Deputy Mayor (who we had the pleasure of meeting). To top it off, I went to my first itty bitty city cafe where I sipped on my first French cafe le creme. Magnifique!

Bonjour!

I have finally made it to my new home in Ambialet, France! It's a wee bit early here (3:45 am) but that doesn't matter because, well, it's France. Thankfully classes don't start until Thursday morning so I'll have some extra time to adjust to the jet lag. I haven't even been here for twenty-four hours but I am already more than excited to post pictures of my (very own) room and its windows. You know at the beginning of Beauty and the Beast when everyone is singing “Bonjour” and opening their windows with the double shutters? That is what my windows are like!

Much more to come very soon. xoxo

One more month

One. More. Month. One more month and I will be in Ambialet, France for the fall semester of my senior year. At the moment, a month seems distant, but I know the time will pass by quickly. There's a lot to do before then. I'm anxious to talk to my good friend Mollie about her time abroad because I know she will have excellent advice to offer about what to pack, where to go, what to see. Just look at my future backyard!

This clock never seemed so alive

I have finally checked off an item from my "Getting Ready for France" to-do list! As such, I have decided that now is as appropriate a time as ever to begin this blog with which I intend to document my European adventures. After perusing through the mall for an hour or so with my best friend last night, we stumbled upon the most perfect watch (since I have no idea how to ask for the time in French). It's a silver Timex (which just reminded me of the allusion to the Timex mentioned in the "Raining on Sunday" song by Keith Urban) that has the nicest little digits and nightlight so that you can even check the time in the dark. It was very sweet of him to buy it for me, and I know that it will come in handy throughout my entire trip (and long afterwards).