la fin du semestre

Wow, have these past few weeks been busy! I keep thinking I’m going to find time to update my blog, and then I never do…maybe that should be one of my New Year’s resolutions?? Anyway, having survived two weeks of final exams and papers, I am writing this entry as I anxiously await my family’s arrival in Nice.  I could be waiting awhile.  Apparently a light dusting of snow is enough to shut down the entire Amsterdam airport and any outgoing flights.  I’m crossing my fingers that they make it here in the next few days but you never know…In the meantime, here’s what I’ve been up to these past few busy weeks…

A few weeks ago, I went shopping in town with Michèle.  I still hadn’t done any Christmas shopping, and when I told her this at dinner one night, she insisted that she take me shopping in the “real” Montpellier.  Apparently I’m hopeless at finding all the cute, off-the-beaten-path boutiques, so Michèle graciously took me under her wing one Saturday afternoon.  I couldn’t have asked for a better tour guide of all the best little shops in Montpellier, as my host mom used to be a boutique owner herself for several years.  She showed me the street where her shop was, and we even went inside to talk to the current owner.  Michèle seemed to know everyone as we walked around-Montpellier isn’t that small of a town, but she was in the business for eight years.  I felt like I was getting an inside perspective, as we went from store to store, chatting with the store owners, many of which designed or even made everything they offered for sale. 

So I finally did it.  I cracked and bought a gym membership.  I told myself the temps in southern France would be warm enough, so that I could just run outside, even in the coldest winter months.  I promised myself I would stay disciplined enough to go on regular runs, in order to avoid the ridiculously high-priced French gyms.  My plan worked fine up until about a month ago, when I just got sick of running in the city and getting weird looks from all the locals.  I started to miss a good work out on the elliptical.  Pathetic, I know.  After some extensive research, which basically consisted of me interrogating every French person I know (aka my host mom and my language partner, Estelle) about the cheapest gyms in the area.  This wasn’t as easy as it sounds, as the French don’t really have the American habit of going to “work out” somewhere, so it was hard for them to give me good advice on this issue.  I ended up finding a place about a ten-minute walk from my apartment that offers a “student discount” but will still cost an arm and leg for the remaining five months I’ll be here.  Included in the price are all the classes offered at “le new planet forme.”  I plan on taking advantage of all these classes I had no choice but to pay for, but it should be interesting.  Yoga is challenging enough for me, let alone yoga classes taught in French…

This semester ended so abruptly, it’s hard to believe it’s really over.  The feeling can only be described as bittersweet; on the one hand classes are over and I’m about to spend two weeks with my family in Nice (assuming they ever make it out of Amsterdam), and on the other, I’m sad to see friends leave.  When I started the program here, I didn’t know one person, and now I have to say goodbye to some great people I’ve gotten to know and grown close to over the past few months.  We have gone through so much together, and this experience is one we will always share.