Photos of Geneva, Sunrise

Very pretty church.

It was the festival of lights, where various artists put up light displays around the city- the path between the different displays is marked by the Pacman characters.

A luxe store for kids, they even have kiddie perfume on the table!

Pretty architecture...

Little cobblestone messages on the street! They had them in multiple languages, like Chinese, Arabic, Russian, other ones where I had no idea what they were....

Another church.

This isn't a good picture of me. I didn't want to put it up. But I want you all to see the size of the Toblerone.

Christian Louboutin store.

The backpack full of chocolate that we bought between the three of us. It was so heavy!! I had a backache the next day. But it was worth it.

Description of Geneva, Sunrise...

Two Saturdays ago, Claudie took me to Geneva and Fernanda, a Mexican girl who lives in Aix-les-Bains, came along with us. The goal: buy chocolate to send back home for the holidays. The train schedule was really spaced-out, there was either a train at 6:20 am, or 12:30 pm. Because we wanted to get back early enough to do the other stuff we had to do, we took the 6:20 train and got into Geneva around 7:30. It was really cold in the morning, but it warmed up fast! Because nothing was open when we first got there, we walked around and visited the town. Apparently, there was Switzerland's biggest road race that day, but by the time they started we had already moved on to the main old town district and were loading up with chocolate. We had to go to the bank and change money because Switzerland isn't a part of the E.U. and they use the Swiss franc, not the euro. I already had a ten franc bill that the Swiss exchange student, Jason, had left me. So I brought that along, and it was worth roughly 8 euros which isn't bad at all! We started out changing a little money because we didn't want to have extra, but we went back within twenty minutes to change more. Also, because I already had 10 francs I spent less, so I was borrowing money to Claudie and Fer before we had the chance to go back, operating like a real Swiss bank. (It's true, they have whole streets lined entirely with banks!) We went to a supermarket and bought about 5 kilos of chocolate... a little over 10 pounds, I think... Anyway, it was a backpack full and it was heavy! (But worth it.) We didn't have enough francs at the register so we payed in part francs/part euros and there was a huge line behind us because we had to figure everything out. It was really funny (for us)!
Anyway, Geneva is gorgeous. The architecture is much more German than French. Also, they were about to celebrate (well, now it's been celebrated- it was Sunday, December 12th) the Marmite. It was when the Genevans (?) fought against Savoie, my region in France and of which Chambery was the capital, who were trying to annex them. The French soldiers were trying to scale the walls at night and all the Swiss soldiers were sleeping. But, an old lady was awake and saw them so she took her pot of scalding hot vegetable soup (called her marmite), and threw it down on the soldiers trying to scale the soldiers, foiling their surprise attack and ultimately defeating them!
Anyway, I can't load photos now for some reason... but I will try back again later and have a whole post with just the photos.
Also, this is the last week before vacation and in a little less than one week (next Wednesday morning) we leave for Germany to spend Christmas with the first host family of my host sister when she went to Monday was Claudie's birthday so I made chocolate cookies but because the grocery stores here don't have the same things as in the U.S. I had to improvise on the recipe. They turned out really well and the recipe is now an official secret that will be passed down in my family from generation to generation and guarded like a precious diamond. Also, I just got back from rock climbing and today we learned the technique of climbing up cords. We didn't use the wall at all, because when you're putting all the holds onto the wall you have to climb us simply the cords because you've taken down all of the holds (I don't really know this word in English, but the rock structures on the wall that you grab onto...) It was really fun but really hard and I now have a ton of blisters. It had to be done though because Saturday we're taking down all of the holds and redoing the walls at the gym. I'm really excited!
Happy Early Holidays!!!!

SNOW!!!

Tuesday night it started snowing in town, which is rare in Chambéry (apparently it happens only twice a year normally). Usually the snow stays up in the mountains, and it hasn't come down in town this early in 40 years! Anyway, it's the same all over France with a ton of unusually early snow. And, because they're not used to it, all the buses shut down and the schools close so today is officially a snow day! And, we had yesterday off anyway for some admin business. So, we've had two days in a row to frolic in the foot and a half of snow that's fallen! Yesterday I built a snowman with Rogerio, but when we went back two hours later to check on it, someone has ruined it! While it lasted, it was a really nice one though. People are also going skiing through the town and having giant snowball fights. Today we went sledding and down a really big hill in the park. There were these little boys who were going skiing there, too. They had even made jumps that they were going off of and landing no problem! I would like to walk back there with my skis... But tomorrow we have school again! :(
After sledding, we went to a café that the kids at the other school, lycée Monge, go to all the time because it's right next door. The lady was really nice and she gave us all an extra cookie with our cocoa. There was a fusball table, so we played that too with her son. It was really nice and I definitely want to go back.

Nordic skiing around the elephant fountain!

One of the main streets in town.

More skiing.

A really pretty courtyard- this was where we built the snowman, who we named Timmy. When we went back to check on him two hours later, someone had destroyed him... we were crushed, naturally.

Because yesterday was December 1st, the Christmas lights went on! The building behind the fountain is where I live, third floor.

Another main street, the Rue de Boigne.

Place Saint-Léger.

(Again. And notice the snow build-up on the sides!)

I know the Rotary says no dating, but...

Just so you can see how much snow there was! And notice the car in the background!

The Christmas lights on the trees are really pretty!

End-of-Quarter Report

I'm officially more than 1/4 of the way through this year. It's flying by so fast, it's crazy. Life continues at school. I got 16/20 on a literature essay, which is good for French school. And the teacher used my ideas as examples for the class. I'm understanding the principles of greek a little better with Mme. Crespo's lessons in the library during break on Wednesday. I can now read greek and answer questions in class! I (and my mom) figured that I should give a breakdown of an average day. I'll try to give the norm as best as possible, but all my days are different. Here's my school schedule for Monday:
9:05-10:00 Literature
10:00-10:20 Break (on campus)
10:20-11:15 Literature
11:15-12:10 Greek
12:10-1:00 Italian
1:00-2:35 Lunch Break (off campus)
2:35-3:35 English
3:35-3:50 Break (on campus)
3:50-5:35 Philosophy

Now, here's Wednesday, where I have class only in the morning:
9:05-10:00 Philosophy
10:00-10:20 Break
10:20-11:15 Philosophy
11:15-12:10 Greek
12:10-12:50 Quick lunch...
12:50 Take bus for tennis
1:30-3:00 Tennis
3:00-5:30 Free time!
5:30 Bus for rock climbing...
6:00-8:00 Rock Climbing
8:30 Dinner (This is when we eat dinner every night... a lot later than stateside!)

This last weekend was really fun, so I'll give a breakdown of that, too:
Friday Night: Stay over at friend's house. Meet her family and see all of their ski collection. There's a type of skiing called ski randonée, where you hike up the mountain in these specially designed skis and then ski down alpine-style. This means you can go out in the wilderness where there's no one else!
Saturday Morning: Help rock climbing instructor and two other guys with a rock climbing class for 5-7 year olds.
Saturday Afternoon: Fire in the apartment building just next door, have to evacuate but no damage done! It was just the one apartment that got burned because some lady left her clothes iron on. No injuries or anything, because she had left to go run errands. Here's a link with the video someone took, I live in the pink building shown at the very beginning.
http://www.ledauphine.com/savoie/2010/11/20/incendie-en-ce-moment-au-centre-ville-chambery-savoie

There was never really a risk that the fire would transfer to our building, but Claudie told me to take what I wanted to be better safe than sorry. So, I grab my passport, 50 euros, my ring and my teddy bear. Little do I know that there will be a huge crowd standing around our building to look up at the fire when I walk out clutching my teddy bear. Needless to say, I got some strange looks while we waited for the fire to be put out.
Saturday Night: Go over to friend Claire's house and have dinner with her family and Cassey.
Sunday Morning: Claire's dad takes me to the ski sale....

AND VOILA! It was cheaper to buy at the sale then to rent every time you go skiing. I'm definitely going to go every single weekend possible and there is no doubt about it, this year I am learning how to downhill ski! (And cross-country ski too, because they do a lot of that here. Claire's parents said that they'd invite me.)

Pictures of Lyon!

The Rhône, one of two rivers in Lyon that converge at the one end of the city and form the triangle-shaped neighborhood called the Presqu'île ("almost-island"). This is where downtown Lyon is.

View of the Basilica from another hill. Lyon is very hilly.

Fountain close to the mairie (mayor's office).

Basicila (La Basilique).

Painting inside the basilica.

Tower in one of the courtyards of Vieux Lyon (the old town). There's a "homeless" guy who lives in the top of this tower but because he's lived there non-stop for thirty years, French law says that he now has officially earned the right to stay there free of charge and he can't be kicked out.

One of the courtyards.

River in the evening.

Buildings along the river in the eve

Ok, so I found my other memory card. Here are the pictures I took of Lyon! Lyon is the second largest city in France and it was so gorgeous.

A Visit to Annecy

Friday of last week, I went to sleep over at the house Adriana (a Mexican girl living in Annecy). So I spent Friday and Saturday in Annecy! I love Annecy, it's gorgeous. It's right on a huge lake and there are tons on things to do. Also, the train station is right in the middle of town, which is incredibly convenient. Going there meant that I took the train for the first time in Europe. I went to the station to buy my ticket, waited for the train (it was actually a bus on the way there, and a train on the way back), and got to Annecy with no problems! I got to see a lot of the other exchange students in Annecy. It was a lot of fun and nice little vacation.

A man doing Chinese yo-yo in the huge park right by the lake (where we ate lunch on Friday).

At the chain Chez Barnabé, where you can choose in between all these different kinds of cookies (chocolate chip, Snickers, caramel, double chocolate, butter cookie) and brownies and tarts too. I chose an ourson cookie. I'm not sure what it was but it had chocolate chips and then more chocolate and caramel and marshmallow stuff on top. After you buy the cookie, you put it in the microwave so it gets gooey!

Halloween display in a chocolate shop!

More halloween!

Annecy has lots of canals, and swans everywhere.

Sushi for lunch on Saturday. There's Roxy from Ecuador on the left and Adriana on the right. It was the first time Roxy had tried sushi. She didn't really like it... So it's good we got rice and teriyaki too!

Adriana and Borinya from Thailand (who loves sushi).

 

 

Other than that, on Monday I spent the day in Lyon but I can't find the memory card with my pictures on it, so those are on the way because I know when I stop looking for it, it'll pop up... Now it's back to school and studying. I have a paper to write on the philosophy topic: "Am I responsible for the acts which I do unconsciously (e.g. things done while sleep walking)?" So... yeah. Haven't started that one yet and it's due Wednesday. But, I have all day tomorrow and on Tuesday I probably won't start school until 10! More photos to come with my other memory card.

Handball Game, Vacation...

Handball stadium.

 Sunday night, Rogerio's host mom took us to a handball match between Chambéry and Nîmes. I had no clue what to expect because I had never even heard of the game before. For those of you who are like me and were not aware that this sport existed, here's an attempted description: handball is like soccer, played on a basketball court, with a smaller version of a soccer ball that you can only pass using your hands. You can dribble it like a basketball or not, it's up to you. Traveling isn't illegal like in basketball, most of them just carry the ball and run. Then they try to get it in the soccer-like nets on either end of the court. These guys all have mad hops.

A really enthusiastic announcer who danced around the court! It was a really fun crowd. Their supporters go all out.

This is where the players sit when they get kicked out of the game. Penalties work like in hockey, and after so many you just get kicked out for the rest of the game.

 I'm also on break, since last Friday officially! So, I've been keeping busy hanging out with people and I've barely started on my homework... In my defense, though, I have cleaned my room. Monday and Tuesday I went to the skating rink two times in a row, and I'm definitely getting more comfortable. I can avoid falling now, can steer, can keep up a little speed while going around corners, and am even starting to bend my knees and skate faster! All of this balanced out by the fact that I am still incapable of stopping of my own free will. If a little kid falls down right in front of me, that kid's a goner.

Friends by the elephant fountain! (From my window.)

Hot chocolate served with whipped cream and a mini chocolate cookie. The most exciting discovery in Chambéry since... the choco-banana macaron that I ate the day before. Macarons are the most delicious things in the world and I will put up pictures soon. But in the meantime look on Facebook or google images!!! (I personally haven't taken pictures of them yet, but it was a banana cookie sandwich with chocolate in the middle. This is a long caption.)

Hot chocolate with Marina (from Brasil). And Anita (from Canada), who took the picture!

Mer de Glace/Grenoble/Rotary Meeting/Riots.

Two weekends ago, Claudie and I went with her hiking club to hike near Mont Blanc. We took a cable up to the observation deck at the top of the Aiguille de Midi, a really tall mountain just next to Mont Blanc. You're almost level with the summit! Then we hiked along a lower ridge to the Mer de Glace (Sea of Ice).

Snowball with highest mountains in Europe in the background!

Solid ice, inside the mountain with Morgan, the daughter of Claudie's friend (and my friend, too).

Alpinists, on a 6-inch wide ledge.

Where we hiked, these stone piles are called cairns (sp?) and they mark the path.

Hiking. The autumn colors reminded me of Minnesota!

The Mer de Glace. A woman said that 50 years ago there was a whole sheet of thick ice with crevasses and folds and everything but it's diminished this much due to global warming.

 Last Wednesday I went to Grenoble to take the PSAT at the American school there. I went with Cassie and after the test we went into downtown and met her Czech friend, Karina. We went to a real, old-fashioned chocolate/tea/pastry salon and afterwards walked around and looked in different shops. Grenoble is south of Chambéry in the region called Isère. It's so pretty in the countryside! There are all of these autumnal forests and rolling hills. No snowy mountains though. That's why Chambéry is so perfect- you're in the middle of everything!

Delicious chocolate éclair with hot chocolate in the pastry salon.

Baking shop with tons of stuff inside, and lots of halloween baking supplies.

Outside of the baking store.

Le Jam Studio. You pay 5 euros per hour and can go in there with your band and... jam!

Look what I found in a guide book in a store in Grenoble!

 Thursday night was my first Rotary meeting/dinner with my club. The meetings start late, around 8:30, and they take place at this country club/chateau place three Thursdays per month. (But I won't go to every one, although I want to go often!) I'm the only girl, because women aren't allowed and all the wives have a separate, unofficial club. The dinner was so good, especially the dessert. It was this soft, piping hot, moist cake with gooey raspberries on the inside! Below I have documented our four courses:

Mushrooms with some herb foam thing...

Mussels, white beans, foam, and a crunchy zucchini flower (my favorite part).

Best course after dessert! Potato cakes and then the pulled/roasted pork circle thing with a tomato and a whole clove of garlic!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm......

Site of the meetings.

 Back in Chambéry, there are some riots going down! There has been a continual strike ("grève") for almost a week now, because the French government wants to change the official retirement age from 60 to 62. There are lots of young people who just want to rebel and break stuff ("casseurs"), but the places like the library and my art school are also on strike. The police have been using tear gas and today I had to run away from it down this alley! They were right by my house (for the first time), and so I had to wait before going home. It's actually really exciting, not that I'm going to join up or anything. But, I still feel completely safe because it's never by my school and hardly ever by my house. Also, tear gas is as violent as it gets. But still, the best course of action is just to stay away.

Walking around Chambéry, I saw this sign for the Bar Saint Paul! Definitely going there at some point.

Riots outside of my friends' school.

In a nice, quiet park away from the grève, tightrope walkers who said it was okay if I took there picture!

SQUAT team, view from my house.

One of the rioters trying to stir things up. I know this guy personally, I talked to him in the line in Monoprix one time. He's one of the homeless people who I see around a lot.

Three hours of class, then tennis, then rock climbing tomorrow!!! (And Rogerio comes for the first time to rock climbing with me!)