one week!
Well, the past seven days have brought me a lot of clarity and tranquility. The stress is definitely still there, but I'm also getting really excited.
I received my housing assignment last week, which was probably the most worry-invoking part of this whole process. I'll be living with the Gagneux family (Gagneux literally translates to "winners"--a sign, yes?), although I'm not really sure if it's a family or just a woman. IES didn't initially give me their/her e-mail address, so I was naturally freaking out because I had to call them/her and speak IN FRENCH. HOLY CRAP. I was basically afraid I was going to miss something major and, you know, show up on the wrong day or something. Fortunately, Nicole (host mom) e-mailed me this weekend. The good news is she's excited to meet me. The bad news is she's not getting home until 7:45 p.m. on the day I arrive. I arrive at l'aeroport at 10-ish a.m. Now, granted, I have to go through customs and immigration and all of that, but that still leaves a good seven hours. I spoke with IES today and, although I can stay at the center until she comes to pick me up, they close at 6. So I have to stand out on the street for two hours? My IES advisor reassured me that they'll probably just stay open for me, although she wasn't sure because this has never happened before. Oh, good. Setting precedents already. I know it will all be okay, though. More importantly, I know that it will soon be a distant memory.
The OTHER good news is that I got a phone call from Sam, who lives three blocks away from me and is going to Paris on the same program. Not only does she live in my neighborhood, she also went to my high school. And I never knew her. How weird is that? We talked on the phone and we're planning on getting coffee later this week, so hurray for friendly faces.
Until next time, I guess.
I received my housing assignment last week, which was probably the most worry-invoking part of this whole process. I'll be living with the Gagneux family (Gagneux literally translates to "winners"--a sign, yes?), although I'm not really sure if it's a family or just a woman. IES didn't initially give me their/her e-mail address, so I was naturally freaking out because I had to call them/her and speak IN FRENCH. HOLY CRAP. I was basically afraid I was going to miss something major and, you know, show up on the wrong day or something. Fortunately, Nicole (host mom) e-mailed me this weekend. The good news is she's excited to meet me. The bad news is she's not getting home until 7:45 p.m. on the day I arrive. I arrive at l'aeroport at 10-ish a.m. Now, granted, I have to go through customs and immigration and all of that, but that still leaves a good seven hours. I spoke with IES today and, although I can stay at the center until she comes to pick me up, they close at 6. So I have to stand out on the street for two hours? My IES advisor reassured me that they'll probably just stay open for me, although she wasn't sure because this has never happened before. Oh, good. Setting precedents already. I know it will all be okay, though. More importantly, I know that it will soon be a distant memory.
The OTHER good news is that I got a phone call from Sam, who lives three blocks away from me and is going to Paris on the same program. Not only does she live in my neighborhood, she also went to my high school. And I never knew her. How weird is that? We talked on the phone and we're planning on getting coffee later this week, so hurray for friendly faces.
Until next time, I guess.
posted by Anne @ 2:32 AM
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