Bonjour!
Alright, I know everyone says this, but I genuinely cannot believe the second month of my study abroad has come to a close. I thought?that the first month went slow, but the second one really zoomed by. My?first month in France was quite the adjustment, but the second was more about enjoyment and acclimation.
Classes haven’t changed much since my first post in January. Still attending a couple classes a week and the curriculum is a little slower-paced than A&M’s is, which I’m grateful for. I am learning a lot of interesting and different things than I would?in the U.S. My wine business classes are by far the most interesting (go figure…). Our class is a melting pot of different cultures and people and?they all do presentations on their own countries and the wine business in that particular country;?interestingly enough, we end up learning a lot about the country itself from people who live there. Group projects and presentations are a big thing at the EM! Back at A&M, I was used to quizzes and tests and assignments, but here it’s all lecture and group-focused activities.
I also have become more and?more happy with living Strasbourg. The weather is slllloooowwwly becoming better. There are more and more sunny days, and occasionally the thermometer will occasionally work its way up to 10 degrees celsius (look it up & get used to celsius). I also really am coming to love the “Petit France” area of Strasbourg. It’s so beautiful and ornate and just so… French! I love that we are just a 10 min bus ride from the German border so that traveling in Germany is incredibly cheap for us. I also find myself loving the French food. Of course, I miss America’s wealth of food choices.
One Friday in February, our grape and wine knowledge class took a field trip to our professor’s?vineyards in?Ribeauxvill?. It was some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen and the trip was so fascinating! We toured the vineyard, went down into the wine cellar, and participated in a wine tasting. Most interesting field trip I have ever taken. Here are a few pictures…
?
I’m am so grateful for all the opportunities I’ve been given to travel. We have traveled every single weekend in February, and I hope to be able to do that in March as well!
Travels…
-Paris, France. My mom flew over for the first weekend in February (and for my 21st birthday on the 10th). She and a friend stayed in Paris, and that first weekend I went to visit them. Paris was great! It was an even better experience than most students will?get because, since I was with my mom, I was eating?delicious?foods and staying in a beautiful?hotel with a view of the Eiffel Tower. For three days, I was eating 3-course meals twice a day in the best?French restaurants we could find. It was H E A V E N! I was so spoiled. We also were blessed with fantastic weather which made for perfect outings to the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, and the Avenue des Champs-?lys?es. After a few days in Paris, my mom followed me back to Strasbourg.
–Munich, Germany. Victoria, Courtney and I were itching to go to Germany for the weekend so on?Friday we decided to buy a train ticket and explore Munich until late Monday… and MAN was that a great idea! We left Saturday morning and spent the day in Munich shopping and walking around the center of the city. That evening, we visited the world-famous Hofbr?uhaus beer hall. We ate good food, drank German beer, and really enjoyed ourselves. The next day we took a tour of the Dachau concentration camp; this was by far the saddest thing I have ever experienced, but I am so glad I did. Dachau was one of the first camps and served as the “brutality model” for the rest to follow. Almost all of the camp is still untouched and original, so we took a guided tour and visited the whole campsite. The sickening feeling of the Holocaust hasn’t left me and I think everyone who visits Munich should see?Dachau. We met up with another guy from?Erasmus in?Strasbourg and met a girl studying in Berlin, so we had a lot of company and fun. The last day in Munich was easily the highlight! We took a train to the spectacular?Neuschwanstein?Castle and hiked around the castle grounds.?Despite the snow that covered the mountains and the castle, the?weather was?warm and comfortable. The castle was unbelievable and the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen.
–Porto and Lisbon, Portugal. Winter break has arrived, and the first half of it was spent in Portugal. A group of 7 of us flew to Porto, spent a few nights there, and then took a bus?to Lisbon and spent another few nights there. Portugal is just a beautiful country in general. There was so much Spanish influence in the buildings, food, and culture. Sangria is really big in Portugal and all the girls loved it! In Porto, we spent our Saturday night exploring the (rather late) night life and joined?a big?pub crawl. It was so cool, however I am definitely not used to the stay-out-until-7am life. In Lisbon, we took a day trip to Sintra and Cabo de Roca. Cabo de Roca is a gorgeous cliff on the Atlantic ocean and the very most western part of Europe. We didn’t get to visit any beaches, but we made up for that in Barcelona. Loved Portugal and would love to go back and stay longer!
–Barcelona, Spain. Some?of our group opted to spend an extra day in Lisbon, another part decided to go to southern Spain and visit Seville, but?Zach, Courtney, and I decided to go straight to Barcelona and spend the remainder of our winter break there. I wish I could say we spent our 5 days learning a lot about the history of Barcelona or visiting famous museums, but we did not! Courtney and I really enjoyed our time?in Barcelona by going to the market daily, visiting the beach on the Mediterranean,?hiking up?to castles?and parks, and eating TONS of good food! The days and nights were more about enjoyment than education. I really loved the warmer weather in Barcelona and, of course,?the beach! The nightlife in Barcelona was really fun and a great experience. We spend 3 solid nights out at the famous Barca clubs and I’m still trying to catch up on my sleep… We stayed in the famous “Kabul” hostel, located right on Las Ramblas. What a great way to end February!
