Ugh. What a mess with my schedule and my visa and my teaching thing.
Well my schedule was all set, but then 2 of my classes were pretty much out of my level of ability to pass in a foreign language, so I've been trying to change my schedule around. Then, that sort of stemmed me to change a lot of my classes, so now I'm a little worried that I will be going into 3 or 4 classes late. Then, to make matters worse, I won't even be able to go to 2 of my classes this week, and one next week because of my medical appointments for my visa.
AND my visa. Stupid stupid visa. Well my visa is meant to expire the 1st of February, as I was originally only going to stay for a semester abroad. Well I had an appointment with the Prefecture in France to extend my visa for friday the 21st of January, yesterday. I went. Waited and did the whole thing, then when I got to the desk, with my folder and all my super organized paperwork, he told me I'd have to come back to do it. Apparently they prefer to wait til the visa has expired to do it. But no one told me that before. NO ONE! jerks. So now I have another appointment in 2 weeks. This time, though, Guillaume can't come. So if there is another strange circumstance, I'll have no one to help me understand it.
Then, along with the visa paperwork is the OFII paperwork. Who knows what that stands for. But anyways, for the OFII stuff, you have to get a medical visit if you are staying in France more than 3 months. Well I came back to a letter in my mailbox that I have my medical appointments next week and the week after. There are 3 in all. There is a notice on the bottom of the letter that says the times and dates of the appointments cannot be changed. Well they all have to land right during classes. So there is actually at least one class that I will miss the first 2 weeks of. Grrrr.
Also, I was hired at the end of last semester to teach some english classes. Well actually, last semester it was just to be a conversation partner, but this semester it is to teach them. So, we had our meeting for that last week, and it was decided that I would teach the wednesday morning classes and the other American doing this would teach the afternoon classes. Easy enough. But then, the reason I had so much trouble changing my schedule was that classes kept landing on wednesday morning. Oh it was a mess. Well thats all worked out, but everything was still resting on me getting my visa. Which was supposed to happen yesterday, but didn't. And I'm even more confused, because the other American had all the same stuff with his visa, but had no trouble getting it extended before it had expired. Harumph. :(
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Classes have begun again
Well hello there!
So its a new semester and so new classes. I have most of the same classes as last semester, so life hasn't really changed too much. Its just all French classes, like grammar, linguistics, and so on.. I'm hoping this semester won't be too bad though. The only class that will make more of a difference is my French class for non-native speakers where I moved up to the advanced class with one of the British girls. We'll see how it goes. It seems to be better than the other class so far though. The professor is Canadian. Kinda random, but she has a slightly different accent. The class is a lot smaller than upper intermediate was, and people seem to have more of a desire to learn, so I think it should be good.
Also, Guillaume and I's mini-Christmas was lovely. He gave me a hand made bowl that is super pretty, and also a really nice silver necklace with a pearl and small diamond thing. It was really sweet. So everything is good on that front :)
The new group of anglophones (plus Rachael and I) are going out to Mexican tomorrow. Yummm. I'm excited. Welp, I've not got too much to say, at least nothing too interesting to say. But love you all.. Thanks for reading!
So its a new semester and so new classes. I have most of the same classes as last semester, so life hasn't really changed too much. Its just all French classes, like grammar, linguistics, and so on.. I'm hoping this semester won't be too bad though. The only class that will make more of a difference is my French class for non-native speakers where I moved up to the advanced class with one of the British girls. We'll see how it goes. It seems to be better than the other class so far though. The professor is Canadian. Kinda random, but she has a slightly different accent. The class is a lot smaller than upper intermediate was, and people seem to have more of a desire to learn, so I think it should be good.
Also, Guillaume and I's mini-Christmas was lovely. He gave me a hand made bowl that is super pretty, and also a really nice silver necklace with a pearl and small diamond thing. It was really sweet. So everything is good on that front :)
The new group of anglophones (plus Rachael and I) are going out to Mexican tomorrow. Yummm. I'm excited. Welp, I've not got too much to say, at least nothing too interesting to say. But love you all.. Thanks for reading!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Back in France
Welp.. Made it just fine. Flying isn't fun, but all is well. I knew I was back in France though when I got glares on the tram in Le Mans for having a suitcase. But still, I'm hoping this semester is as good as the last one was.
Right now I'm just really looking forward to celebrating my mini-Christmas with Guillaume :)
Right now I'm just really looking forward to celebrating my mini-Christmas with Guillaume :)
Coming Back to France...
Well I have a goal for this semester.. UPDATE THIS THING!
Last semester I was pretty bad about actually updating my blog, and so most people have probably forgotten about it by now, but I plan to do it this semester. I mean it’s a nice idea. Online journal that everyone can read about what you are doing with your life abroad, but I just get lazy. Oh and put pictures on this thing is a royal hassle. Not a fan of that part. So its not likely that it’ll have much by the way of pictures throughout the semester, but hopefully it’ll actually have entries of some kind.
SO! I’ve decided to come back to France. I think anyone that reads this thing would know that by now, but I thought I’d put it out there.
I’m on my way back now. I’m just sitting in the Minneapolis airport killing time. I have a six and a half hour layover. YAY! What fun.. well I’m surviving. Not a lot can be worse than the bad weather and delays of getting home before Christmas.
I just took a little nap though, and I’m sitting at some cushy chairs by the moving sidewalk, kinda watching people go by, but mostly just working on crocheting a scarf. Well a woman with her husband and baby just walked by, looked at me and said “We didn’t make it.” Like I’m supposed to have a clue what in the world she is talking about and why she is telling me. Well I’m assuming she didn’t make her plane, but I just woke up. Huh?
People watching is definitely better in other airports. There aren’t too many people going by, and they are all pretty normal. Blah. Stupid Minnesota with normal looking people. I NEED ENTERTAINMENT.
I’ve not got a lot to say for the time being, so I think I’ll leave you be. There is a good chance the only person reading this is my grandma. So HI GRANDMA! Hope all is well :)
Last semester I was pretty bad about actually updating my blog, and so most people have probably forgotten about it by now, but I plan to do it this semester. I mean it’s a nice idea. Online journal that everyone can read about what you are doing with your life abroad, but I just get lazy. Oh and put pictures on this thing is a royal hassle. Not a fan of that part. So its not likely that it’ll have much by the way of pictures throughout the semester, but hopefully it’ll actually have entries of some kind.
SO! I’ve decided to come back to France. I think anyone that reads this thing would know that by now, but I thought I’d put it out there.
I’m on my way back now. I’m just sitting in the Minneapolis airport killing time. I have a six and a half hour layover. YAY! What fun.. well I’m surviving. Not a lot can be worse than the bad weather and delays of getting home before Christmas.
I just took a little nap though, and I’m sitting at some cushy chairs by the moving sidewalk, kinda watching people go by, but mostly just working on crocheting a scarf. Well a woman with her husband and baby just walked by, looked at me and said “We didn’t make it.” Like I’m supposed to have a clue what in the world she is talking about and why she is telling me. Well I’m assuming she didn’t make her plane, but I just woke up. Huh?
People watching is definitely better in other airports. There aren’t too many people going by, and they are all pretty normal. Blah. Stupid Minnesota with normal looking people. I NEED ENTERTAINMENT.
I’ve not got a lot to say for the time being, so I think I’ll leave you be. There is a good chance the only person reading this is my grandma. So HI GRANDMA! Hope all is well :)
Saturday, November 13, 2010
The Strikes.
To tell the story of the strikes, I must back up a little bit in history. France currently enjoys the most years spent in retirement. The retirement age has been 60 for a very long time. Their economy could collapse if they don't change things, but that part is not too important to the people. Anyways, in 1995 and in 2006, they tried to pass a reform to raise the retirement age 2 years to 62. It was met with so much opposition, and the strikes got so bad, it did not pass either time. Well they tried again this year. The country was in a panicked uproar.
The first major thing to go on strike was the oil companies. The fuel for planes was the first to run out. The major airport in Paris had enough reserves for about 2 weeks, but that ran out quick and there was no sign of an end to the strike. It got to the point where planes were stranded in Paris, and the airport authorities were telling airlines that if they were going to fly in, they must be loaded with enough fuel to get back out. All the petrol stations were closed, as no one had any gas left. The truck drivers could not do their jobs, as there were no open gas stations.
The trash collecting companies went on strike in several areas too. In Marseilles, the trash was not collected for weeks, and it was just piling in the streets. There were some riots in Paris, but it was not quite as bad as the news made it to be. I am in Le Mans, which is relatively quiet, but a school was burned down here. It was a junior high, and someone lit a trach can in protest which led to the building going up in flames. It wasn't really an accident.
Students got in on the movement nation-wide, including the campus I am on. Here are some pictures:
"Students Mobilize!
All on strike until retirement!"
To go on strike, they literally block classes from happening. They have a general assembly, and decided they will blockade campus. They will go out during the night, and chain and blockade all of the doors to every campus building (except administrative buildings).
The Science building: Apparently
they have decided as long as there
are chairs here, why not sit down.
Just a normal day at university
All of the striking died down after the break. The reform was passed. Sorry, France.
The first major thing to go on strike was the oil companies. The fuel for planes was the first to run out. The major airport in Paris had enough reserves for about 2 weeks, but that ran out quick and there was no sign of an end to the strike. It got to the point where planes were stranded in Paris, and the airport authorities were telling airlines that if they were going to fly in, they must be loaded with enough fuel to get back out. All the petrol stations were closed, as no one had any gas left. The truck drivers could not do their jobs, as there were no open gas stations.
The trash collecting companies went on strike in several areas too. In Marseilles, the trash was not collected for weeks, and it was just piling in the streets. There were some riots in Paris, but it was not quite as bad as the news made it to be. I am in Le Mans, which is relatively quiet, but a school was burned down here. It was a junior high, and someone lit a trach can in protest which led to the building going up in flames. It wasn't really an accident.
Students got in on the movement nation-wide, including the campus I am on. Here are some pictures:
"Students Mobilize!
All on strike until retirement!"
To go on strike, they literally block classes from happening. They have a general assembly, and decided they will blockade campus. They will go out during the night, and chain and blockade all of the doors to every campus building (except administrative buildings).
The Science building: Apparently
they have decided as long as there
are chairs here, why not sit down.
You can actually see the chains
on the door in this photo.
There is a cement bench. No idea
how they managed to pull that off.
Just a normal day at university
in France.
All of the striking died down after the break. The reform was passed. Sorry, France.
I did not have 2 of my classes for a full month though, because of the strikes. The week before the fall break, the doors were blocked. Then it was break. They tried to strike again after break, so the doors were blockaded again. Then, after 4 weeks, I had my wednesday classes again. It is nothing short of ridiculous.
If the french know one thing, it is striking. A couple years ago, they tried to do a reform on the Graduate School Program. The university I am at went on strike for 5 weeks. Only then, they not only chained and blockaded the doors, they covered all the bases. To get into the buildings, you would have to take about the puzzle of desks and chairs to get to the doors. Then you would have to deal with the chains. Say you passed that, the halls would then be stacked full of an impossible mess of all the desks and chairs in that building. If you were eventually able to make your way through all of that, the doorknobs to the classrooms would have been unscrewed, so it would fall off in your hand, and the door would still be locked.
Its a different experience. That much is certain.
Revolutionary Concept!
I'M UPDATING MY BLOG!! ha.. I know. It is shocking.
Well, no one probably even reads this anymore, as I never update it. But I plan to be better now!
So it has been raining for a few days here. Its seriously no fun. And its not happy rain, or light rain, it is miserable-pouring-horizontally rain. On thursday, we were walking to the tram stop at about 10 at night, and it was just a straight hurricane. The wind was blwing soooo hard, and we were all stooped behind our umbrellas. I think at least one umbrella didn't survive. And we were soaked for the next hour or 2 after getting inside. Its lovely.
But what better thing to do on a rainy day than knit. Haha, I really have been though. I have made 2 scarves now. So if anyone wants a new scarf for Christmas, let me know :)
School is blah. The class I actually know what is going on in is my linguistics class. And for that reason alone, I'd say it is my favorite. I've got some other classes that I don't give much thought too, then there are the 2 I hate. The first: Grammaire Francaise. Horrible. Even the french kids don't understand what is going on as it is so super technical, so how in the world are we supposed to do well?!
Then there is Campus Soir. The only french class intended for the international kids. Well our teacher is crazy. First off, she cannot even dress herself. Last week, she wore a red turtlneck with a red tank top on top. Then she carried a red briefcase thing. They were all clashing bright reds. Ugh. I couldn't focus all of class because she looked so bad. Then this week. She wore the same red turtleneck, with 2 gold necklaces on it too, a jean sleeveless dress with a few large flowers on it and 2 giant buttons on the shoulders, with sheer navy tights, and beige shoes. She dresses like a four year old would. It's like usually the individual pieces of her outfits aren't too bad, but she just puts on whatever she feels like wearing that day.
Well second off, she has never learned a foreign language herself. So, when she is teaching french as a foreign language, she is horribly rude and confusing. She explains things in such a roundabout complicated way that no one ever knows what is going on. And she is really mean if people make mistakes. No one ever wants to say anything because she just pounces on their mistakes and makes everyone feel stupid.
And finally, she hates America. Awesome. Each week we do different listening comprehension activities. They tend to be on the most random possible subjects. A few weeks ago, it was pollution in the oceans, followed by the Airbus A380, and followed this week by Child's Rights Laws and the UN policies on them. Somehow though, she ties it into talking about the problems of America. Without fail. This week, we were discussing possible cases where children's rights are breached. The British girl mentioned countries where children are forced to be soldiers very young. Our teacher, lovely woman that she is, looked at her in all seriousness and said oh, you are thinking of the program in America. Then she moved on. So newsflash! We have a program that forces children into the army. Oh and then later she said our public schools aren't free because we must pay taxes to fund them. huh? Is that not what France does too, lady?!
Well enough about her. I've had midterm type tests in 3 of my classes, translation, grammar, and linguistics. I'll find out monday and tuesday if I am passing anything.
Well, no one probably even reads this anymore, as I never update it. But I plan to be better now!
So it has been raining for a few days here. Its seriously no fun. And its not happy rain, or light rain, it is miserable-pouring-horizontally rain. On thursday, we were walking to the tram stop at about 10 at night, and it was just a straight hurricane. The wind was blwing soooo hard, and we were all stooped behind our umbrellas. I think at least one umbrella didn't survive. And we were soaked for the next hour or 2 after getting inside. Its lovely.
But what better thing to do on a rainy day than knit. Haha, I really have been though. I have made 2 scarves now. So if anyone wants a new scarf for Christmas, let me know :)
School is blah. The class I actually know what is going on in is my linguistics class. And for that reason alone, I'd say it is my favorite. I've got some other classes that I don't give much thought too, then there are the 2 I hate. The first: Grammaire Francaise. Horrible. Even the french kids don't understand what is going on as it is so super technical, so how in the world are we supposed to do well?!
Then there is Campus Soir. The only french class intended for the international kids. Well our teacher is crazy. First off, she cannot even dress herself. Last week, she wore a red turtlneck with a red tank top on top. Then she carried a red briefcase thing. They were all clashing bright reds. Ugh. I couldn't focus all of class because she looked so bad. Then this week. She wore the same red turtleneck, with 2 gold necklaces on it too, a jean sleeveless dress with a few large flowers on it and 2 giant buttons on the shoulders, with sheer navy tights, and beige shoes. She dresses like a four year old would. It's like usually the individual pieces of her outfits aren't too bad, but she just puts on whatever she feels like wearing that day.
Well second off, she has never learned a foreign language herself. So, when she is teaching french as a foreign language, she is horribly rude and confusing. She explains things in such a roundabout complicated way that no one ever knows what is going on. And she is really mean if people make mistakes. No one ever wants to say anything because she just pounces on their mistakes and makes everyone feel stupid.
And finally, she hates America. Awesome. Each week we do different listening comprehension activities. They tend to be on the most random possible subjects. A few weeks ago, it was pollution in the oceans, followed by the Airbus A380, and followed this week by Child's Rights Laws and the UN policies on them. Somehow though, she ties it into talking about the problems of America. Without fail. This week, we were discussing possible cases where children's rights are breached. The British girl mentioned countries where children are forced to be soldiers very young. Our teacher, lovely woman that she is, looked at her in all seriousness and said oh, you are thinking of the program in America. Then she moved on. So newsflash! We have a program that forces children into the army. Oh and then later she said our public schools aren't free because we must pay taxes to fund them. huh? Is that not what France does too, lady?!
Well enough about her. I've had midterm type tests in 3 of my classes, translation, grammar, and linguistics. I'll find out monday and tuesday if I am passing anything.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Hello!! Long Time, No Talk..
Wow it has been forever and a half since I updated this thingy. Sorry to all of you who told me that you were bummed I hadnt posted anything in awhile. I love you, my creepers.. facebook has some photos too, that everyone is welcome to creep on.
I FINALLY have internet. Its amazing how difficult it is to get anything done here in France. Its truly appalling. I'm not sure how you spell apalling, but close enough. I almost feel like I am starting to lose some of the english words. Occasionally I can only thing of how to say things in French, and not in English.
So much has happened in the last few weeks I don't even know where to start. I promise I will start updating this. And I will probably just randomly tell stories from the gap in updates, as I remember them.
I think the biggest thing I have to report is the boyfriend. He is amazing, and French. And adorable. And probably the sweetest thing in life. So yeah.. Lately, I pretty much just hang out with him when possible. He speaks English too, so we switch every other day, speaking French and English.
I also must shout out to my friends here.. I LOVE YOU GUYS!! I'm too lazy to name you all by name right now, but Corinne I can't wait to travel with you over break! And I'm so happy I have a fellow hopeless romantic that is also obsessed with romantic comedies, my darling Jordan.
All the girls (my friends are pretty much all anglophones, Americans and English) are off to Paris this weekend! We are leaving Friday evening and coming back Sunday evening, I can't wait! Then, in 2 weeks, we have fall break! Woo.. Corinne and I are off to Brussels, Amsterdam, London, and Leeds for 10 days. Its going to be FANTASTIC. Yay!
The university here is ish, but the town is great, and I adore the people so much. I will update this whenever I think about it. Right now I am seriously considering napping though. I'm knackered, as the British would say. Love you all and thanks for reading my super boring blog!! :)
I FINALLY have internet. Its amazing how difficult it is to get anything done here in France. Its truly appalling. I'm not sure how you spell apalling, but close enough. I almost feel like I am starting to lose some of the english words. Occasionally I can only thing of how to say things in French, and not in English.
So much has happened in the last few weeks I don't even know where to start. I promise I will start updating this. And I will probably just randomly tell stories from the gap in updates, as I remember them.
I think the biggest thing I have to report is the boyfriend. He is amazing, and French. And adorable. And probably the sweetest thing in life. So yeah.. Lately, I pretty much just hang out with him when possible. He speaks English too, so we switch every other day, speaking French and English.
I also must shout out to my friends here.. I LOVE YOU GUYS!! I'm too lazy to name you all by name right now, but Corinne I can't wait to travel with you over break! And I'm so happy I have a fellow hopeless romantic that is also obsessed with romantic comedies, my darling Jordan.
All the girls (my friends are pretty much all anglophones, Americans and English) are off to Paris this weekend! We are leaving Friday evening and coming back Sunday evening, I can't wait! Then, in 2 weeks, we have fall break! Woo.. Corinne and I are off to Brussels, Amsterdam, London, and Leeds for 10 days. Its going to be FANTASTIC. Yay!
The university here is ish, but the town is great, and I adore the people so much. I will update this whenever I think about it. Right now I am seriously considering napping though. I'm knackered, as the British would say. Love you all and thanks for reading my super boring blog!! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)