Montpellier, je t'aime.
On Tuesday, Lisa and I went to Béziers to visit our schools. We did not anticipate the long day ahead of us, not realizing we would be visiting every class in every school we will be teaching in. As I teach in 3 schools, and 9 classes, and Lisa teaches 13 classes in 4 schools, it was one of the longest days ever. Our contact lady Patricia, a genuinely kind, yet eccentric woman, picked us up at the train station where we began our 9 hour trek around Beziers. Fortunately, my schools are in walking distance of each other, so I can easily maneuver between my morning and afternoon classes. Also, French primary schools are adorable. The schools, at least in Béziers are very small, and very old (and old-fashioned). Interestingly, they felt very casual and laid-back. Teachers wore jeans and sneakers, the atmosphere just felt very relaxed to me, which is the opposite of what I was expecting. I actually felt overdressed, with my cute blue floral print H&M teacher dress that I was planning for this occasion. For some reason I thought the schools would be very strict and traditional, but we’ll see. I was introduced to each class, saying, “Hello, this is Stephanie, and she’s from the United States. (In French). The looks on the kids faces when they heard I was from the US of A were priceless. They obviously aren’t old enough to understand French hostility towards Americans, thus their excitement to learn English was beyond palpable. My favorite moment though, was when a boy raised his hand to ask me, “Mais elle connait QUOI?!” Meaning, “But what does she know?!” I loved it. I actually felt my maternal instinct kicking in, to take in my sheep under my wing, to guide them with my mother tongue, and I got a bit teary eyed. The whole prospect of teaching English, the reason for my big move to France, was beyond my mental capacity for the time when I was trying to find housing, and acclimating to a new city. It was just not on my radar. But when I saw their faces, and mind you, I have 7-10 year olds, so they get points for being cute, I thought, this is so much of why I’m here. Call it cliché, but I do believe the disposition for teaching runs in my family, thus it’s in my blood. Sometimes I feel I have a calling to be a teacher, or at least a mentor of some kind, and every time I get into these types of situations, the way I feel confirms it. Never do I feel more connected, engaged, excited, committed, and rewarded as I do in positions of teaching and guidance. Dear God I’m becoming my mother. (Just kidding Mom!!!)
Enough of that, this blog is too funny for the dramatic exposure of my feelings. Some other cool stuff going on: Lisa, Wes, and I did some Montpellier sightseeing that I had been meaning to do. We went to the jardin des plantes, a really pretty recluse in Montpellier full of exotic plants where we saw frogs mating. We then saw a few churches that were really beautiful and insanely old. As the years pass and my ties to religion are as weak as my digestive system, I do feel a sense of comfort/peace walking in these churches. I got surprisingly homesick, more so than I had been since I got here. I think I was thinking how much I can’t wait my family to come visit, knowing how much they would like to see this too. I got over it pretty quickly when we walked out and I found a cute café that was selling sorbet.
And then, after that, it was time for our daily 30 Rock and naptime. I made a delicious dinner of mashed potatoes (the real kind), hummus, lentils, and roasted red peppers. We went out for drinks with a bunch of people, which was fun, I just feel super lame for getting tired at like 12. I do love being social, but all I wanted was to watch tv with a bowl of cereal. So when I got back, that’s what I did, with my new gluten free chocolate rice ball cereal. SO GOOODDD.
Today Lisa and I got up early to meet people for breakfast, and we went to this great, hole in the wall British bookstore that I am slightly in love with. I don’t usually like spending money on books, because I refuse to buy anything I can get free (legally or illegally), but I caved and bought the second Twilight. I have plenty of time to leisurely read here, and finishing Twilight saga has been a project I’ve wanted to finish since last year. I aim high. We then went to give our deposit to the guy working on our apartment, and it’s official! We move in Saturday morning! That’s in less than 2 days!!! AHHHH SO HAPPY! In celebration, we went to Odysseum, this giant outside mall, and bought bedding/sheets/pillows at Ikea.
At Odysseum, we found the French version of Target -> Géant Casino. I cannot wait to go browse. I can’t wait to shop for that matter. Do you know the will power I have gained from living in a city full of amazing French fashion? The streets are lined with stores, none of which I have walked into yet. It’s just something to look forward to, right? I can’t buy anything until I have an actual closet. So starting Saturday, it’s all going downhill.
Time to shower, the rain and humidity is doing horrendous things to my already out of control hair. I’m getting dinner with people to plan a trip to Spain for our first vacation, which is only a week after we start teaching. Have I mentioned I love France?
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