Hill Winstead - June 9 in France

We spent today with our host families finishing up work from the previous week and preparing to leave for Paris Monday. I started the day by sleeping in until about 10:30 and then I had my usual breakfast of Fitness cereal (it’s basically the French version of Special K but with chocolate.) After breakfast, I killed an hour or so by watching the first half of The Shawshank Redemption, before leaving to meet Arjun and his exchange student Michael on Rue Nationale. The three of us wandered around the city for a bit before heading to Quick Quality Burger Restaurant for some lunch. Quick is basically the French version of McDonalds but it tastes a lot better. After lunch we wandered around some more and Michael shopped for Father’s Day presents while Arjun and I talked to one of the employees, whose brother lives in Chicago, about North Carolina. The conversation was basically <> and that seemed to be the extent of his English. After a little more shopping and wandering, we went to Le Palais to engage in what seems to be the French national pastime, sitting on the street drinking cokes and watching people walk by. Soon enough, I had to return home to prepare to go to a party with my exchange student. Around 6:30 we left for the party, but had a hard time finding the street. It was at one of the French student’s father’s house and it was amazing, it looked like a chateau and the grounds were immaculate. We spent several hours there eating, dancing and playing American football before returning home around midnight and collapsing into bed.

Julia Niemi - June 7 in France

Today, I woke up at 6:30 and was looking forward to going to seeing everyone, since I had been sick the day before. Unfortunatly, I was still sick, so I was not able to go with everyone. My french mother decided she would take me to the doctor. I watched a few movies (Ghost, The Family Man, and 4 Weddings and a Funeral) before going to the doctor. The doctor's office was different than mine back home. It was a lot smaller. When I went into the exam room, it looked more like a business office. It had a desk and a computer. The doctor decided that it was just a small stomach bug from being in France. He prescribed me a few different medicines. I then went to the phamacy. The French call this the Chemist. The pharmacy was just a pharmacy. (The pharmacy I go to in America is attached to Eckerds). I then went home and slept for a little, to try to regain some energy. I was feeling a lot better, so I went to the party at Alex's (Max's exchange student) house. People played soccer, danced, and ate all night. It was really nice to see all of my friends again, because I missed them. Ms. Jones and Mrs. Walden stopped by the party for a few minutes, to see how everyone was doing. Chloé and I left and went home, because we were both tired.

Mazin Khoury - June 7 in France

Today, we woke up at our normal times and headed to school in anticipation of our most grueling test yet, the bike ride. Some of the more physically exhausted students, such as myself, questioned our dear teacher Ms. Jones prior to this day about the difficulty of this ride. Everytime we asked, Ms. Jones gave the same convincing reply, "Oh don't worry about it, it's so mellow!" and eventually, we believed her.

When we hopped off the bus at our biking location, we began to accept Ms. Jones' answer. There was nothing but smooth flat roads surrounding the area and we were convinced that this bike ride would be a pleasant experience. Within 15 minutes, we had changed our thoughts completely. We were tracking through field after field of high grass and mud, often having to stop and walk our bikes to keep from plunging into the unknown abyss. 14 Hours later, we were done. Although exhausting, all most of us had to show were bruises and various dirt stains. The french students, however, showed no fatigue from the death ride and continued to run around and play games as most of us sat down to eat our lunch. Typical.

After the bike ride, we had the opportunity to visit the chateau "d'Azay le Rideau." We walked about the castle, answered our challenging worksheet, then finally returned to the bus for the short ride back to school.

Luckily, we all survived today, though we once thought there was no chance. We headed home and prepared for the weekend festivities.

Images from June 6 in France

Molly Lankford - June 5 in France

Today, Tuesday June 5th, we went to the chateau Chenonceau. We left the school at 9:00 and borrowed a charter bus for the ride there (luckily everyone had their own seat). On the way there, I noticed just how many poppies (coqulicots) there were that lined the road. When we got there, we all split up - Julia and I went to the chateau first. We both agreed that the best room was the Black Room, but all of the others were just at intricate and beautiful. One of the first sights of the chateau was the green algae infested moat, another sight was the tower that had a gift shop. I, unfortunately did not get to see the garden, but the maze led us to a rather relaxing place to sit in the shade. After this, we went to have lunch in a nearby town.

During lunch, most of us discussed how our families asked us how many sandwiches we wanted (and how we only received 3). My lunch box got attacked by bugs and I was forced to give it to Max. Many of us just sat around; and some of us walked in the town; very tired.

Anirudh Kota - June 4 in France

Today started off the first day of our last week with our correspondents. We started the day off by having a class with our teachers, Ms. Jones and Mrs. Walden. After that we had a bit of free time and then we were off to the Mairie de Tours. The Mairie de Tours is a little like the mayor as he has some responsibilities to the city. If someone wants to get married they would go to the Mairie and have it done. We toured around the building of le Mairie and found some very nice rooms (like the one in front of the chimney). After a big tour of the building we got let out for lunch. For lunch a couple of the guys and I went out to a restaurant which had the best fries ever! Unfortunately they weren’t as good the second time around but they were still quite good. After lunch we slowly reassembled back at the school and then left for our highly anticipated dance class. It was in another town close to Tours and so we had to walk to take a bus to the other town and from there walk to the studio. We were all hot and sweaty by the time we had gotten to the dance studio but there was more sweat to come. We first did a small dance by without partners and then we started to do pair dancing. We started off very basic with just the footwork and after that we got more advanced as we learnt how to correctly spin our partner and do a check. After a tiresome but fun afternoon of dancing, we headed back to school where we went back home for the day. But after a quick shower and food, we had to head out to another town again to see a Theater spectacle put on by some local actors. It included a farce about married couples and a lot of music from the Renaissance period. After a comical evening of music and theater, I got home late and fell asleep. Oh and I didn’t included my correspondent in any part of my summary today because his class won a country wide math tournament (for the second year in a row) and so they got to go to an amusement park.

T’Sani Watson - June 3 in France

Throughout the week all of the French kids have been shopping for Mother’s Day presents because today is Mother’s Day. Coincidentally, today was also Delphine’s sixteenth birthday. Delphine is my French exchange student. This morning we had a small breakfast because we all slept in this morning. For lunch, Delphine, I and, Delphine’s mom went to Delphine’s grandparents house for a traditional French lunch. The first course was a salad which was followed by bread and foie gras ( a type of pâté). The main course was steak and potatoes. For dessert we ate a raspberry and strawberry tiramisu that Delphine’s grandmother had made. Once we had finished eating Delphine and her mother opened their gifts. Then, at about two o’clock, Delphine and I left her grandparents house and went to Fantasy Forest to meet up with some of the other students who participating in the exchange. Fantasy Forest is a high ropes course in France. It was tiring but, a lot of fun. We were having so much fun that we didn’t want to leave. We stayed there until it closed at 6:30. Then I returned to Delphine’s house to unwind for the day and prepare for school tomorrow.

T’Sani Watson

Rachel Park - June 2 in France

This morning I woke up at 11:00 am, well rested from the previous night’s late dinner (9 pm –12 am) at “Le Palais” in the center of Tours, France. My host family was already awake and told me the plans for the day – swimming! After a delicious breakfast of pain au chocolat, we celebrated Mother’s Day. The family gave her gifts and cards. I also made a quick card for her and surprisingly all the French phrases I had written were correct! Then we sat down to a scrumptious lunch of concombres à la menthe (cucumber mix), brochettes d’agneau (lamb shishkabobs), saucisses (sausages), frites avec des pommes de terre (fries), and framboisier (strawberry cake). In addition, we also had the staple sliced baguette bread and huge plate of French cheeses.

After lunch, Doriane, her friend, and I went to the pool. It was a very large building with three indoor pools and one outdoor pool. There were all heated, but I still managed to get cold near the end of our 3-hour stay. One pool was for babies, one for little kids, and two for adults. Also, there were many indentations in the pool wall with numerous water nozzles that were designed for back massages. I also rode a huge water park-like slide on rubber inner tubes many times with Doriane and her friend Angel.

After the pool trip, I went running before dinner. Then we ate a fancy meal of quiche lorraine (quiche), ratatouille niçoise (vegetable mix of tomatoes, onions, garlic, red peppers), and rillette de Tours (a spread similar to pate). We went to bed quickly afterwards because tomorrow we will go to “Le Grand Parc – PuyDeFou” in Vendée, France. This is a Roman themed amusement park with, for example, a replica of the coliseum with gladiators and live lions and tigers. I wasn’t sure if I understood Doriane correctly when she first told me, but I guess they have tame lions and tigers… I hope. So, even though Mother’s Day is actually tomorrow, we celebrated it today because we will be in Vendée all day tomorrow.

Rachel

Amanda Walker - June 2 in France

Today was FUN! It was our first extended 24-hour break from school! It was much needed, as we worked so hard this week. I woke up by 10h30, which is - I am sure - much earlier than many others. I did my morning routine very similar to that in the states, which was eating cereal and watching TV (F.R.I.E.N.D.S.). Diane, Margaux, and I looked at their family pictures and later ate lunch outside with her whole family. At 2h30 Margaux and I met Clara, Charlotte, Michelle, Blythe, Ines, and Aurelie to go shopping. We spent the next 3 hours on the streets of Tours - it reminded me a little of 5th avenue in New York (all of the people and all of the stores)! We stopped at a cafe to cool down and ordered drinks. Many of the boys met us soon after, as they were shopping too. After, Blythe, Aurelie, Michelle, and Ines came home with Margaux and I. We bought pizzas before returning home and when we did get home, we all went upstairs to my room and did each others makeup and listened to music. We played cards, talked, and had a good time, waiting for 8h30 to arrive. When it did, french students and their correspondants started to come, bringing sodas and desserts. From then until about 11 or 12 we all ate, played Kemps (a card game with partners who search for 4 of a kind and create a signal to show their partner they "have kemps"), played music, danced to music, and ate even more. Saturday was a very good day and was one of the most bonding days we've had yet.

Andrea Green - June 1 in France

At 8:10, the French held a breakfast--bread and juice--for the Americans in one of the classrooms. At 9:00, school began, and the Americans had a French class taught by Mme Bordier. She taught us about French fables, particularly an author named Jean de la Fontaine. Then we had gym class. We walked for about five or ten minutes to a soccer field and several basketball courts where we played frizbee, basketball, and soccer, and some people jogged. Then we walked back to Ste.-Ursule to eat lunch. Some of us ate at school with our correspondants, while others went into the city of Tours to eat at various restaurants. After lunch, we split up into two groups and went to classes with the French students. First, one group went to a history and geography class and the other attended a French class, and then the groups switched. In the French class, we learned which French phrases are familiar, normal, and formal. In the history and geography class, we listened to a comparison of the French and American political systems and governments.

I think that the French students are normally very quiet in class, but because the school year is almost over for them, they were a little bit more talkative than usual. When school ended, we left with our correspondants to shop in the city, grab a bite to eat, or go home. Have a good weekend!

Andrea

Blythe Friedman - May 31 in France

Today the day started off with a trip to a bakery called the "vieux four". They specialized in the making of the bread. we learned all about the different types of flour, as well as how they make all the different types. After we learned about how they made it we got to taste the different types. They were all really good but his award winning bread was a favorite among many. After we finished tasting the different types of bread we had some free time zhere most of us went to the mall and shopped. After the mall we all returned to the school to have lunch with our friends and students. After that we had a class on WWII. We were lectured on the subject and then watched a movie. Then class was dismissed, however most of our students still had class so a group of Americans were craving some "american" food, so we walked across the street to McDonalds. We were all extremly happy to have a little qmerican food in our stomachs. Despite the weather it was a fun day for us all.

-Blythe Friedman

Max Dancik - May 30 in France

Today was a Wednesday so we went to school with our exchange students. The first thing we did was look at a PowerPoint on the town of Tourraine. After we watched the PowerPoint we toured the city of tours on foot. We split up into groups of five or six and walked from landmark to landmark. We visited multiple landmarks including a cathedral, the museum of Beautiful Arts, and a church. The cathedral was gigantic. We resisted the temptation to make loud noises just to hear the echo. There were chairs in the cathedral which lead us to the assumption that they had mass there every Sunday just like a regular church. There was also an organ in the cathedral that was bigger than some houses. We never got to go inside the museum but we did see the cedar tree and the gardin. The cedar tree was planted there in 1804. Fritz was on display next to the cedar tree. Fritz is an elephant that died in Tours and was then stuffed and put on display. The garden was behind Fritz. The garden was made in the French style. The church we went to was in use. When we got there we saw people who had come to pray and nuns. There was a tomb under the podium. There were many words and pictures carved onto the walls of the tomb. We were allowed on the top level of the tomb but not where the actual bodies were.

After school we went to a special restaurant for dinner. At this restaurant we were taught how to make our own meals. We were split into 3 groups of around 8 people each. Each group was assigned a course. My groups course was desert. We made pamplemousse au thé, crumble d'ananas au gingembre, sorbet passion, crème brûlée safran , and samoussa coco et mange. After we finished cooking the meal we sat down and each group took turns putting the finishing touches on their portion of meal and serving them. Since we were in charge of the desert our finishing touches included using the blow torch to cook the tops of the crème brûlée. I was in charge of using the blow torch to cook the crème brûlée while the rest of the group served it to the others. After dinner our exchange parents picked us up and took us home to go to sleep and write our daily journals.

-Max

Arjun Chandran - May 29 in France

Today was the first day that we spent at Ste . Ursule, as yesterday was a holiday. I woke up at 6:00 in the morning to get ready for school. We ate crepes with Nuttella and whipped cream for breakfast. My host family lives in Luynes, a village 30 minutes from Tours, so we had to take a bus in the morning. There is a bus stop close to my host family’s house, but the bus was a little late this morning. The bus goes from Luynes to Tours every morning, packed with businessmen and students of all ages.

We arrived at the school at approximately 8:00, and I waited outside with the other American students until the bell rang at 8:10. We were introduced to the school and given schedules by Mme Roué and M. Le Pargneux. We spent the next three hours learning about the French academic system and its differences with the American system. To learn more about the French educational system, we saw part of a film called Profs. While we were watching this, many of the French students at Ste. Ursule were attending the end of year mass, as it is a Catholic school. At 12:00, we had a two hour break to eat lunch, double the time that we have at Cary Academy! Many of the French host students took their exchange students to restaurants or to their home to eat. Others ate at the school cafeteria. My host student took me to a sandwich shop in Tours, where I had a very good chicken sandwich (although some of my American friends did not enjoy the exorbitant use of Mayonnaise). At least twenty of us (Americans and French) spent the better part of two hours eating, shopping, and waiting for the owner of the nearby candy shop to return from his lunch break. We returned at 1:50 and attended a European History class that is ordinarily for seniors. In this class, we learned such things as the origin of the name Europe, and nicknames for the French soccer star Zinedine Zidane.

We spent the rest of the day checking our email in the Library and playing linguistic games with our French hosts. School ended for most people at 5:00, but my host student had math class until six, so I explored Tours with Hill Winstead and enjoyed more French delicacies at the nearby McDonalds. At six I returned to Luynes with my host student and went to his soccer practice to unwind after a long day.

Arjun Chandran

Jared Carson - May 28 in France

It has only been two days but now when I think, I think in French. Of course the most enjoyable part of the trip for me has been the food. For lunch today my host family prepared veal, and needless to say it was very good. Today most of the students, French and American, met at a local park to play sports. First we played soccer and of course the French controlled most of that game. The Americans had their turn; however, and next we played football and basketball. We spent a good five hours at the park playing non-stop sports, I know now why every single French student is so skinny. Despite the sports, my favorite part of the day still came while I was with my French family: tonight I had my first French crepe.

Jared Carson

Alexander Stuart - May 28 in France

Its always good to start off living somewhere new by having a good time. Today was our first full day in France and Tours for that matter and it could not have been better. I started off the day by awaking at 11 o-clock. I then enjoyed a few hours of down time and good food before the day ran into full swing. David and I went to a beautiful park in downtown Tours and visited with other American students from Cary Academy and their French hosts. We engaged in intense games of soccer and American football. I noticed that the French kids were quite skilled in the arts of athletics. Of course we knew they were great at soccer but they also were quite good at American football. After a few hours of fun at the park I went on a walking excursion through Tours to the house of another exchange student. After enjoying fantastic French pastries the American students and French students enjoyed card games and video games together. David and I then headed back to his house where I enjoyed a fantastic dinner of pork, chicken, and Chinese noodles. It was absolutely delicious. It truly was an exciting fun filled day and I look forward to many more here in France.

Alexander Stuart

Cameron's Journal - May 27 in France

We all arrived at the airport around 11:45 to check our baggage in. After an exchange of goodbyes we made our way to the gate. The first trip lasted about an hour and 30 minutes which seems very short after the second 8 hour trip from New York's JFK to France. We all made it to France, luggage included, and we boarded a bus which would take us to Tours. The landscape on the trip was beautiful. Nonetheless, most used the bus ride to catch up on much needed sleep. Arriving an hour early in Tours we were welcomed by our exchange students and their parents. Because of the time difference, it was morning in France. In fact I'm still not sure what time it is. Upon returning to Maud-Sophie's, my exchange student, home I was allowed to unpack before lunch. After a rather large, but very good lunch I finished unpacking and couldn't stay awake any longer. Later that day I ate dinner with my family and watched the French film Les Chevaliers Du Ciel with Maud-Sophie's younger brother. I was surprised that dusk here did not occur until about 10:00. It was a tiring but very interesting day.

Cameron Bumgarner