Le premier jour...

Woke up at 8am Wednesday morning..

Threw up before going through security at the airport because I was so nervous..

Made it through the 2 1/2 hour plane ride to Charlotte from DFW with a poopy baby and a vocal New York cat lady sitting next to me. She was talking my ear off about the specific comb that she has to buy because Roland has long hair that is prone to matting.. 

Boarded the sleepless 8-hour flight from Charlotte to CDG in Paris to arrive at 6:47 am local time. The flight had touch screen on demand movies/music/tv so it was very bearable.

After meeting the rest of the St. Edward's group we had a 3 hour bus ride to Angers, during which we stopped for food and I practiced ordering un baguette avec le fromage et le jambon..  (delicious btw.)

I couldn't be happier with the residence (Saint Serge) that I'm staying in! I have a nice sized room with a desk, table, kitchenette, closet, and my very own bathroom! However, these European showers with the detachable nosel are very difficult to work considering the fact that there is little (and by little, I mean barely any) divide between the shower and the rest of the bathroom. 

One thing you should know about France's buildings is that the first floor (le premier étage), in which I'm staying, is actually what we Americans would call the second floor.. Yes. There is a 0 floor, and it is the ground level.

After getting settled, we all made our way to the local Monoprix (a larger sized supermarket (supermarché)) and did some grocery shopping. I have wine, baguettes, ham, cheese, yogurt, milk, cereal, and ramen to last the week. Surprisingly, anything tastes good on a baguette.. They are so simple, yet so powerfully delicious. 

Other random events of the day included me frying my (non Euro compatible) alarm clock.. (merde!). There was a small pizza party at which I snagged several slices of some sort of cheesy-bread pizza, which are now sitting chilled in my refrigerator. 

Tonight the group of St. Ed's students all went out together, first to an Irish Pub.. (I've never remembered a pint doing so much damage!) 

Afterwards we got dressed up (because the French don't even need reasons to dress up, they do it 24/7), and walked across town to the street where the student bars are located. Apparently, students entering their first year of université have a sort of initiation every year.. and we were lucky enough to catch it tonight! Once we had all had our taste of beer and cocktails a flash mob of young people dressed in the strangest outfits bombarded the street. They were covered in oatmeal and shaving cream, and they were throwing rice and kitty litter indiscriminately (into my beer). 

I had so much fun just watching everyone out in the street mingling in French and occasionally vacating a small circle to watch people dance/mime/do strange things that Europeans find funny..

It was an especially good opportunity to brush up on some conversational French, as most of the people here love it if you can at least attempt to communicate in their tongue. 

As I'm writing this, I've just finally sunk into my bed. I'm eating the cold pizza from my fridge and I'm thinking about the fact that technically it is Friday morning and I have not slept since Wednesday.. 

The people in my group are a blast. My anxiety about the trip has evaporated. And I have discovered that I know a lot more French than I thought (more than enough to get by at least!). 

Here's to the first spectacular night in beautiful Angers!

Kevin

**BTW: Euro's are surprisingly easy to use in transactions.. they are decieving.. I've spent a LOT today. Oh, and exchange rates suck and Prilosec is my best friend.