Sorry for the lack of posting!! I’ve started some of my classes, and between that and exploring I’ve been pretty tired at night. However, I don’t have classes on Fridays (woohoo!) so I have time to update. Grenoble is still amazing. The students are slowly starting to come back to the city, so it’s getting livelier every day. Last weekend, we took a day trip to Annecy, which is an old medieval town on a lake of the same name. It is seriously gorgeous, one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. We had a great weather and took a boat ride around the lake (which, as we learned, is the cleanest lake in Europe). For lunch, we had a traditional meal of raclette. This genius concept involves a half of a wheel of cheese that is melted by a special thingermabob (technical language, I know). You then scrape the melted part off and put it on potatoes and/or bread. Of course, this is served with white wine and sausage. Vive la France.
The rest of the week was pretty busy. I’ve started three of my five classes. I’m taking a 8-hour a week language class that so far is really hard but the professor is really nice. In addition, I’m taking a translation class (French to English and English to French) that is even harder, but every useful I think. The 3rd class that I’ve started is a 19th century French history class (1789-1914). All of those I take at the CUEF (pronounced Q-F), which is the center for international students. For my other two classes, I am taking those at the faculté (everyone calls it the fac), which is where the Frenchies go. Those start next week and the week after. At the fac, I’m taking a medieval literature class, which has two parts: one hour of literature a week, and one hour of ancient French language lessons. Yup, ancient French. So you can read the texts in their original form, natch. Oh, it’s only a little terrifying. The other class is less certain (I’m waiting to hear back from my advisor), but hopefully it will be a class on contemporary French and European politics. But, like I said, those classes haven’t started yet (the politics one– if it works out– starts next week, and the medieval lit one starts in two weeks).
I’ve put up lots and lots of photos up after the jump from the day at Annecy.
Annecy!
Lac d’Annecy
Raclette
Om nom nom
Oh wow, the raclette looks like deliciousness! And those are beautiful pictures! Seriously they could be postcards. Did you gt a new camera?
It sounds like you’re really busy with class! I hope you have enough time to eat and drink the French deliciousness and explore. and of course blog.
Forever blue,
<3 kz
By: Kzal on September 18, 2009
at 2:17 pm
Drool. (Both to food and scenery.)
By: Rachel Knecht on September 18, 2009
at 2:25 pm
I love the raclette concept. Genius! It beats The Melting Pot hands down. The photos are gorgeous. You have an artist’s eye…
By: Liz on September 22, 2009
at 7:09 pm
love the wheel of cheese! What a perfect repast. That looks like a canal along the houses, reminds me of Brussels. Beautiful pictures!
By: Gail on October 5, 2009
at 7:20 pm
I love everything about this post. I love the photos, the descriptions, and I could not be more impressed by the way you challenge yourself, Hope. I have never met anyone so willing to stretch themselves to find and exceed her limits as you are.
By: Colleen on October 22, 2009
at 6:34 am
[...] just not the same, I swear. In France, it’s one of the surprisingly numerous ways to eat cheese and starch together with at least 3 forms of additional fat. Traditionally, you are supposed to eat it after a long [...]
By: France Part Deux(ish) « Un Rêve qui Prendra Vie on October 9, 2011
at 5:30 pm