First Week in France

It's been awhile since I have written but I am happy to say that I am writing from what will be my permanent home in France for the next 7 months!  It has been a whirlwind week but I have a place to live and it is absolutely wonderful!  Here is a run-down of my last week!

When I was looking for a place to live, Sue, my site director form Angers told me that Universities have Aumoneries which are like Newman Centers in France.  So last Tuesday, I went to the information desk at the University and asked where the Aumonerie might be.  I finally found it after walking around for awhile and spoke with a student who was in the main part of the house.  The first floor has two couches and a table, which makes it look a lot like the Newman Center at U of O, only with a more homely feel to it.  He told me they had a room available but that I also might check in centre-ville for another housing establishment they have set up.  I checked at the other place that afternoon, but they were full for the year.

Wednesday, I went back to the Aumonerie and met some very nice people in the morning.  They helped me set up an appointment with Pere Pierre-Antoine for later that night.  I was going to come back and tour the house to see if I wanted to live there.  They also had mass and activities that night, so I was planning on returning anyway. When I came back, Pere Pierre-Antoine and I went out to the garden and he explained to me, in english, the mission and the goal of students living in this house.  Basically, I am to be an ambassador for students who are looking to become involved with activities with the Aumonerie, and build a community with the other students living here.  I thought this sounded great, and something I am very familiar with from being involved with the Newman Center at U of O.  He showed me what would be my room, and we looked at the rest of the house.  I told him right then I would love to move in as soon as possible!  That night, mass was held in the backyard of the Aumonerie and after we had a meal with all the students who attended.  It was so comforting to me because this was exactly what I did at the Newman Center for the past 4 years.  I definitely feel like home in the community.

Friday, Sister Sonia picked me up at the place I was staying and gave me a ride to the Aumonerie.  She showed me around and explained a few things to me and after that I was on my own.  On the weekends, some of my roommmates go out of town, but I did spend a lot of time with Nadege.  She is a student at the university and very sweet.  She is from France but lives about 10 hours away and doesn't know a lot of people in the town.  We went to the supermarket to get some things for the house and after that it was time to pick up Valerie.

I know Valerie from the U of O and through the Newman Center.  She is studying abroad in Angers this fall but came early so that she could travel and visit.  She is going to stay with me until Wednesday!  That night Valerie, Nadege and I made pasta with marinara sauce which was incredibly simple, but very good.  We had bread and cheese as well.

Saturday was a fun day for Valerie and me.  After leaving the house at 10:30, we wanted to grab some coffee before going to meet up with some of the other assistants in my program at noon.  Everyone has been arriving over the past couple of days so we all want to meet each other.  So in front of the Chateau at noon, we met up with Hannah and Margaux.  It was so great to see other people from the program that I have been taking to for so long.  The four of us went to find a place to go to lunch and found the cutest little creperie, called Rose and Grey.  The decor was adorable, with pink walls and zebra print lamps.

After that we decided to get some coffee at Le Cafe de Caen, before meeting another girl in our group for a drink.  We had coffee on the second story of a little cafe and watched all of the excitement in the streets of Caen.  We left there to meet up with Jessica at an Irish bar called O'Donnells.  We stayed and talked to Jessica for awhile until she left to go to a soccer game.  After she left, we decided we were hungry again so we might as well find a place to eat, yet again.  We texted another girl from our group who was in the area, Parisa, and chose very cute restaurant called Le Fringale, which was the best choice we had made all day.  They had a special on the menu that we could pay 15 euro, and have an entrée, plate principal, and dessert.  For my entrée, I had pate with a little bit of salad and some bread.  I had raviolis for my main course and dessert:  Fondant au chocolat (chocolate cake with a cream sauce).  It was an amazing meal and we were all so full by the end!  We had planned on going out that night, but from spending 9 hours dining and drinking, we just needed to go home and get some sleep!

Today, Valerie and I went to mass at Saint Pierre with Nadege and after, we strolled through the Sunday open market in town.  You could literally buy anything at this market from fresh fish, clothes, jewelry, even mattresses.  Valerie and I ate a galette, which is like a crepe but instead of dessert inside, there is ham, cheese, sometimes an egg or tomatoes.  After eating and wandering around, we met up with Margaux and Parisa at yet another cafe to have some coffee.  The four of us then went to climb up the chateau since they had not yet done that.  It started raining soon after and we called it a day.  Since it has been very cold and rainy, Valerie and I decided to spend the day inside, relaxing and hanging out.  We have already made some hot chocolate.

Here are some pictures from the last couple of days.

  In front of my new home!

My bedroom at the aumonerie!

Kitchen

Valerie and I at the Chateau in front of Saint Pierre

Margaux, Me, and Parisa looking out on the French rooftops!

That's all for now!  Life is going well.  It feels good to finally be getting settled!  And it's so nice to have Valerie here and know people in this town!  

C'est la bonne vie pour moi! :)