This blog is officially suspended until the next adventure   (I’m looking into Australia and New Zealand, if you were wondering).

In the meantime, if you just can’t get enough of my fascinating life and thoughts, I invite you to come along for the journey at Sparsile.  I am revamping my previous blogging habits and hope to post things of actual content, but we’ll see.  Reasons to click through and follow my blog:

- you’re stalking me (umm, creepy)
- you like the way I write
- you are at a similar point in life…finishing college and deciding what to do
- you have similar tastes and would enjoy reading my thoughts on books, movies, current events etc
- you want to keep in touch with me (which would hopefully prompt you to leave a comment every now and then
- you are a dalek and attempting to absorb all the information contained within the internets

à le prochain!

It is my pleasure to present you with pitcoral evidence of my séjour en Europe.  Apologies for failing to post them before the new year, but in my defense I was moving and returning to school… (senioritis + travel bug = plotting next grand adventure and reminiscing about the last)

I have found my transition to life back in the states to be rather un-eventful.  Much as I rather slid un-noticeably into life in France.  Am I so adaptable that I can modify behaviors to fit into my environments?  That’d be kind of cool and give hope for positive experiences when I visit countries that tend to the oriental rather than occidental.  It’s hard to think of the trip as a cohesive whole…it’s more like a chunk of time with adventures that happend to transpire in rather proximate vicinity.

Life is always transitioning, and I with it.
Another transition I plan to make is to a non-travel blog.  More news on that when I figure out how that’s going to work

And now, the photos.  If you are my friend on facebook, click here (I link the next album in the description of the last picture).

Otherwise, here are the individual album links
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

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We interrupt your scheduled blog for two important announcements from our sponsors!

#1 – You (yes, you!) can win your very own random truc (think trinket here) from France!  Click here for details.  And don’t delay because the offer is only good until Christmas (you’ll probably forget if you don’t do it now anyway)!

#2 – Our servers are experiencing some delay in the uploading of frequently promised photos.  In light of the fact that most viewers would rather not sort through 4,500+ images, we appreciate your patience as our worker bunnies sort and file and sort and file in order to provide you with the optimal vicarious experience.  Expect notification some time before next Christmas year as to their online location.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled blog…
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At this point I have been back in the States for a week.  Any lingering effects from jet-lag have probably worn off, although I don’t know for sure.  My jet-lag was such that I fully woke up around 7:30 or 8, regardless of how much sleep the night held.  And as I have been getting up at 6:30 this week in order to go to work, I haven’t been able to see if I can make it to 9.

Some say the reverse culture shock is worse than the initial culture shock of entering a foreign country to spend a small or decent-sized chunk of your life.  Maybe it’s just a carry-over from the laid-back, take-things-as-they-come lifestyle I cultivated in Europe, or maybe I’m suppressing the shock, but my re-entry has not been too terribly traumatic.  Granted, there was some internal resistance to the idea of leaving, however wonderful I knew it would be to see family and friends again.  My arrival into Chicago’s O’Hare stood in stark contrast to Brussels and everywhere I had been the past four months.  I lapsed into generalization: lumping Americans into the overweight-from-fast-food, poorly dressed, mono-lingual stereotype some Europeans have come to hold.  Not to say that I have become European in my ways of thinking (…I don’t think), but I did find the (generalizing again) thin, well-dressed, multi-lingual stereotype of Europe to be fairly apt.  When boarding the inter-airport train that ferried passengers between terminals, I mused how some (myself previously included) would find that a novelty, whereas in Paris (and my brief stay in London) the metro was just another part of my daily routine.  I overheard a few people speaking in French and almost grinned.

My first few days I holed up at home and avoided the necessary evil that was/is thinking.  And since after that I’ve been working and life seems to have picked up right where I left it (along with a significant temperature drop), I still haven’t really gotten around to contemplating the following fact:

I went to Europe.  The whole idea of studying abroad actually became a reality, and that dream which I spent 3 years anticipating and planning is now over.  I went to Europe and travelled and survived.

Change has never made the shortlist for one of my favorite things.  In some ways it grows easier, being more acclimated to it as time passes.  But in other ways, the changes just seem to get bigger, and thus the ratio producing unpleasantness remains the same.

I don’t really know how to sum up, much less explain, the last four months.  Actually I think it an impossible task.  My life went on, much like yours did, and four months passed.  It just so happens that I was in Europe for the duration.

Now I am back.  The shoes I wore before I left still fit, but I walked a lot more in France and England and Italy; they aren’t as comfortable anymore.  I think it’s going to take a little time to figure out whether I just need to keep wearing them until they re-form to fit perfectly again, or do the Europe shoes need to come out and get used to the feel of the clutch pedal and snow and grass.

So I managed to leave blogging to the end of my 60 minutes of internet. Of course.
At any rate, this is the last blog you’ll be receiving from the other side of the Atlantic…Today is Friday and I leave Wednesday. We’ll just let it go without saying how incredibly weird that is. After the homesickness/wanting to go home that came halfway through, I am now kind of accustomed to being in Europe and whatnot, so it’s definitely going to be a change to return to the States. That said, living out of a suitcase and moving is overrated (or appropriately rated lowly). Sometimes it’s nice to just chill at home, and I am excited to again have a home to chill at.

Right now I am in Strasbourg (although this time tomorrow I will be back in Paris… Yes, I know, already spent a month there, but I love it so I just can’t stay away). If you are up on Europe at Christmastime, you’ll know that Strasbourg is one of the places to be…decked out in lights and festive decorations and markets brimming with ornaments and vin chaud (not really a fan though). Pretty fabulous (apart from the rain and occasional wind).

Also, I love Strasbourg…well I seem to have loved most places I have been lol. But in spite of the inevitable innundation of tourists at this time of year, there are still a lot of students, which is cool. And being so close to Germany there is a lot of architecture similar to the Bavarian style. Leavenworth anyone? Slash it’s definitely cooler when it’s authentic

Anyway, next time we chat it’ll be from the same (or closer) time zone!

Coherency is becoming less of a stong-suit with me, at least when it comes to writing.  In two and a half weeks I will be (almost) on a plane headed to Chicago (where, after 2 hours *crosses fingers*, I will catch a flight to Seattle).  Even my journaling has drifted into the more fragmented…but that’s okay.  I’ll piece it together later.

Today is not very warm and there’s a bit of wind…I might go to Ventimiglia (or Ventimille if you’re French), since it’s less than an hour by train, just across the border into Italy.  And if it’s not nice thre, I can just come back (yay for train passes). 

Currently am in the state which entails oh,-next-week-I-probably-need-to-have-places-to-stay.  Which means I should figure out where I am going.  You can decide whether to be impressed that the former seven year old, who knew she loved reading and wanted to be a writer when she grew up, is now looking at a week in Europe with very very fluid plans (I know I am going back to Paris for a few days…but which days they are? not so sure).  Also, I oh-so-conveniently forgot that Christmas is actually a busy time in Europe, what with all the Christmas festivals etc.  Couchsurfing here I come (that or I’ll just go back to places where I can stay with people I know).

On the more psychological side…as I have mentioned before (or if not here, to people individually), I am excited to come home.  However of late have also been realizing that the return to home also includes leaving Europe.  Obvious, I know, but I just kind of take living here for granted right now, because it’s the way things are.  Everyone I hang out with is, shockingly, also living in Europe.

And I have actually posted some pictures (keep in mind the lack of chronology…in fact reverse chronology…).  Also, Heather is way more fabulous about posting her pictures while abroad (she does have a computer though)…so here are her pics from Italy.  Yay facebook.  Or if you wait three weeks I’ll (hypothetically) have the chronological albums up

I found some biscuits at Carrefours that taste like cinnamon graham crackers.  This was quite a happy discovery because crackers like we have a home are few and far between in France.

You should all learn French so I can blog in français.  There would be many grammaical errors, but you could probably get te gist.  I met Lizette in Monaco this weekend sans pre-arranged meeting and we managed to communicate over the phone in French.  I was impressed.

So “they” are right, again.  I am thanking you now, parents, for making me go to TRA and learn Latin and grammar.  Turns out learning another language (at least a romance language) is way easier when you understand the equivalent in your native language, and already understanding the Latin tenses makes the transition to imparfait (imperfect), plus-que-parfait (pluperfect) and futur antérieur (future perfect) much easier.

Europe is good for the saunté.  While I bought more sugar at Carrefours than was probably necessary, I think the fact that I had to walk a mile there and two back compensates.

And to conclude this random collection…here are a few things I thought about yesterday.
 - Why does promod (a clothing store) not exist in the US? (or if it does, where is it!?)
 - I love boulangeries (and patisseries)!
 - The sun is amazing. While I won’t come home as tan as KP will be if she goes tanning, I might have a little color, woot!
 - The new people I meet are pretty cool, but somehow I have managed to be ridiculously blessed in the community and friends I have back home.  Pretty much don’t think I could ask for a better group of people to return to.

Alora…il y a beaucoup des choses dans ma tête.  J’ai visité Italie; je suis venu à Nice.  And I am allowed to write in French should I so desire…it is, after all, the point of this venture, no?

My week in Italy was constituted of/by (oh dear, the English is going) Florence, Rome and brief encounters with Pisa and Salerno.  It turns out that what you have heard and told me is true…the Italians really are crazier drivers than the French, Italy is cheaper than France, gelato is amazing, I fell in love with Italy, and maybe a few Italians fell in love with me haha (I think I was only asked out by two waiters?).  I soo desperately wished I could buy pasta and wine and cheese and olive oil to bring home with me…but that wasn’t really possible…so I bought some tartuffe (chocolate covered stuff) which was 25€/kg (but I only bought 3€30) and quite a bit remains…I prefer to enjoy these things for as long as possible.  I made sure to try the pasta in Italy…really enjoyed the percorara (sp!), which is a specialty of Rome, and a Salerno specialty (I’ll google more thoroughly for the name some other time).

Il faisait très beau toujours quand j’était en Italie (sauf un jour à Florence quand il y avait la pluie). (en anglais: good weather; save a bit of rain in Florence).

This feels a very insufficient post about Italy, but I am coming to the opinion that much of my trip will not sink in until after I return.  I didn’t really have an omg! I am in Italy moment…as I had in London and Paris.  Europe is normal now (altough today I concluded that Ashley is right…it really is just a setting on the dryer) and not so exotic.  Not to say I don’t appreciate or enjoy what I am seeing, but it’s just another part of this continent where I have been living and travelling and learning for the last few months.  After I am home for a while, I imagine the quixotic vision I had will return.  Also, meeting people and hearing random stories from their lives is fast becoming my favorite part of this adventure (thus the superfluity of the word ‘normal’).

Finalement, rest assured…the French really is getting into my head.  When in Italy I seemed to be aware that it was a foreign country…people might not speak English (though many did..seemingly more than in France).  Somehow this was translated into therefore I should speak French.  Heather can attest to the fact that I repeatedly started to pose questions in French or replied to a question with ‘oui.’  Additionally, while Italy is amazing and one week is hardly enough to satisfy one for life, the whole moving around bit has gotten tiresome for me.  I am excited for the prospect of returning home in a month, but I also found in myself an excitement at returning to France…where I could understand what people were saying!  So while I don’t fully know where France stands in my estimation, I don’t think I’ll be able to escape it.  After staying here for so long it has taken up a small residence and returning now contains some small element of a homecoming.

As some of you have gathered, be it from my facebook status or an email or a fairy that secrets news by means of whispers and dreams, I tried escargot. Last Thursday was the Marché des Saveurs in Lyon – a market displaying the products (wine and cheese primarily but not solely) of the Rhône-Alpes region of France. I should have tried more things (but I feel bad, knowing I’m not going to buy anything ), mais c’est la vie. At any rate, when I saw the booth with jars of escargot spread, I overcame my hesitation and innate aversion to the idea of eating snails and took one of the pieces of bread that had something gray and white spread over the surface. Without letting myself think too much about what I was doing, I ate it. And was pleasantly surprised to find it tasted rather like seafood (which I suppose makes sense). Perhaps it wasn’t legit “escargot” in the form of a snail hors d’oeurve, but at any rate, in the future should I have the opportunity to try a snail, I’ll probably go for it.

This is my last week in Lyon, and should anyone be wondering, three weeks is significantly less time than four. One of those mysteries of the universe, I suppose. I confess that I am ready to continue on…it’s not like Paris in that there is something of a finite amount to see as a tourist, and I’m not really settled as a resident. But this also means that I am going to Italy on Saturday, which contains some level of nervousness. In France, I can at least communicate to some extent…in Italy, going to be relying heavily on my phrase book and any English or French the person might know.

On Saturday I took the (early!) train to Annecy…a small lake town in the foothills of the French Alps. There was a bit of brouillard (fog) in the morning, but by afternoon the beautiful blue sky had emerged. I forget how much I love the mountains when I am away from them, but certainly felt their departure as the train pulled away. Granted, if you go up Fourviere in Lyon, you can see the mountains…but they’re quite far off in the distance. At any rate, Annecy was delightful, if I had to compare it to somewhere it would be Leavenworth’s mountains and Lake Chelan. But the vieux ville (old town) was quite unique with a canal/small river (??) running through, complete with ridiculously picturesque bridges crossing between cobblestone streets on either side. Later in the day when I was walking and sitting by the lake, you could see the outlines of more majestic peaks of the Alps rising in the distance. It seems that even in the country you can’t escape the haze of pollution. I suppose this is likely due to the large numbers of people living in smaller areas. Even in our big cities (speaking only of the West coast I suppose, having not really explored the big cities in the east), we manage to spread out and find room for suburbs upon suburbs of houses.

Hello again. I feel like life in Lyon is less interesting than it was in Paris…at least for the reader…because I am not doing as much.  This weekend I spent some quality time in Vieux Lyon (old Lyon)…sat in the stands of an amphitheater that has been around for more than 2000 years and was impressed with the acoustics.  A bride and groom wandered through with their photographer…which was rather poignant for me on the day when one of my close friends began a life of marriage at home (obviously I wasn’t there).  And I was also jealous of the amazing backdrop they had.  We have some cool stuff in the US, it’s true…but ancient ruins, not so much.  Haven’t visited the Gallo-Roman museum yet…it’s free on Thursdays, so that’s when I’m planning to make the trip.

Passed Friday night with some friends from school and really love the multi-cultural atmosphere.   Heard Icelandic spoken and have decided that it is one of the most beautiful languages I have encountered.  I am ever humbled when congregating with people here because I am often the least knowledgeable regarding language.  Most people know their native language and English and are studying French.

As a side note…this keyboard is bipolar.  I set the language on US, but it stayed in French…now an hour later it has randomly decided that it wants to be English, and I am having to shift my typing.

At any rate, you may be interested to know that I have added a few (and by a few I mean photos on facebook.  I contemplated using Flickr, but just decided to stick with facebook for sharing.  It shouldn’t require an account to view the album, although I do apologize if, being facebook, it is inaccessible at work

Click here to view the 8 photos