Finally

I’m in France. I think that fact has finally hit. I’ll make this short and let most of the pictures do the talking…

This is my apartment building. It’s in a residential neighborhood, lots of kids and families, that kind of thing. Come on in.That’s what you see when you walk in. It’s my living room/bedroom/office and that door with the coats on it is the toilet. Yeah, not the whole bathroom, just the toilet. Whatever.

That’s the bookshelf/dresser. (Note how everything has slashes so far.) The window is really great though, fabulous view of…

… the cathedral. Oh, and a giant water reservoir from way back when the trains were steam. I’m considering a letter to the mayor about demolishing it as it blocks my view of the old town, but continuing the tour…

Welcome to the kitchen. It’s small, but it definitely gets the job done, and the view out of that window isn’t too shabby either. No oven however. I was hoping to do some baking and some really nice dinner making. On the positive side I’ll be an amazing stove-top cook by the time I get back from France. Right now I’ve been mostly enjoying bread, cheese, tea and the fresh fruits and vegetables that are everywhere. Soon maybe I’ll start making real food.
And finally the bathroom. (Remember the toilet’s in its own little room up front.) I’m supposedly getting a shower curtain on Sunday, but the landlord also said that for Friday… so if I don’t have one by Wednesday I’ll probably just head out and get it myself. My landlord is really nice and very helpful, but he’s old and a bit forgetful and his claim that the apartment was “fully furnished” was a bit… optimistic I think. But that’s the apartment. Like I said, it’s small, but cozy and I like it.

There’s only two things about the apartment: 1) The guy who lives downstairs coughs incessantly, and it’s a really annoying cough. 2) I’ve never lived alone before and it’s actually really lonely. I’ve taken to watching movies when I get home so that there’s some noise in the background and I don’t feel so alone. (On that note, I’m running out of movies to watch quickly, so if you happen to have any movies or tv series DVDs that you’re not currently watching, feel free to send them. lol)

I’ve met the other assistants in the elementary schools. It’s amazing how different our English accents are, but we’re all going to be teaching the same language. The first two that I met when I arrived on Sunday are Bonnie and Danielle. Bonnie’s here with her boyfriend. They’re from southern California and she’s teaching for 7 months in a town north of Chartres called Dreux. Danielle is also teaching for 7 months, here in Chartres, and she’s from Southampton, England. They both live at the other building our landlord owns, but it’s very close to mine se we can hang out together. Here’s a picture of the four of them in front of the cathedral. The next arrival is Ruthan and she’s from Jamaica. It’s very cold here and she’s having a hard time adjusting to the cold temperatures. And finally Ayo from New York has arrived. The last assistant I’ve been hanging out with is Jessica. She’s from northern England, but she’s teaching at the lycee (high school). We have deemed her worthy of honorary primary assistantship status though. Lucky her. :)
Here’s a photo of all of us after dinner the other night. Sorry for the flash glare. Left to right it’s Ayo, Ruthan, Mark, Bonnie, Danielle, and Jessica.
And now to the cathedral. Yes, it’s huge.
Yes, the windows are amazing.No, I haven’t taken the tour with Malcolm Miller. I heard his voice on a Rick Steves’ DVD and wanted to punch him so I’m not going to pay for a tour. Yes, I’ll go to mass at it sometimes: they offer a Gregorian service, a regular service and one in the crypt… I’ll have to try all three. And finally, yes, they have concerts and such in it which I also plan on attending at some point.
In other news, Bonnie, Mark, Danielle, Jessica and I had a wonderful time in Paris on Saturday. It was great to be able to spend a random day in Paris. Better yet, we didn’t even really do anything. We just wandered the city and soaked in the Paris aura. It was amazing. We have many more trips planned in the future, some of which even have an itinerary and/or purpose!
As to my schedule, the next two weeks are mostly orientations and observations. I’ll be working in two different schools. If you care to look them up they are Gerard Philippe in Chartres (directly in front of the cathedral!!) and Jean Jaures in Luce. They’re almost exactly equidistant from my apartment and neither are far enough to merit buying a monthly bus pass, which is a god-send as the cost of living in France is unbelievable! I haven’t really met the teachers or students yet, that’s all the next two weeks. At the end of October we have our first two week vacation and I’m currently in the planning stage of a trip, more to come on that later.
Hope everyone reading this is doing well. Leave comments, questions, love, the usual. A bientot! (See ya later!)