Ashley and France : November 21, 2014

This has been an exhausting week I don't know where to start. Yesterday I had two field studies in a day: one early in the morning for my teaching internship. We visited an old schoolroom that had been preserved and were given an interesting lecture over the history of Catholic versus public schools in France, especially in regards to the LaSallian teaching system that I admire. We then had a chance to write with ink and quill a French recitation. I was thinking of my grandma the whole time, a calligrapher herself. She would have loved it!

IES students Lindsay, Sophie, and Clare.

The first two are staying for a year as well.

A bit of practice with French cursive script

Later that evening, I had a field study for my theater class. We went to a short play that our theater professor had directed. It was really good and fun hearing French jazz singing. I was so tired though. Not to mention I have a 16 page paper to finish for my Nantes history class before Monday, which I am making good progress on. Fortunately there's plenty of material on someone so formidable like Robespierre. Victoria and I were discussing at a coffee shop today how we prefer being assigned multiple smaller assignments that accumulate our grade, rather the emphasis on exams and huge assignments like a paper. I'm not really a fan of the education system here, not going to lie, but I'm not saying it's bad. I'm just used to being assigned homework with very specific requirements, not such an open assignment that my grade depends on. I'm used to more rigorous classes as well, though the tests are challenging, this is true.

I'm grateful to have such a good French prof like Mme. Deschanel. She's given me good advice for my internship (especially when it comes to working with difficult French high schoolers) and she's just a great teacher. So I'm happy to be able to have her next semester as well. I did well on my French presentation and it was fun discussing Albert Camus' The Stranger with the class, part of my topic. I haven't presented in French since high school and this time I can't begin to describe how much easier it was.

Nantes is being strung with Christmas lights and the Marché de Noël is up and running. I'm told it's beautiful in the evening, so can't wait to check it out and try some "vin chaud." It was hard hearing so many talk about Christmas and what they're looking forward to in my Phonetics class during our conversation topic. Yes, it's exciting, but it just makes me homesick for my family, for Christmas tree hunting, for the Grotto all lit up. There are certain things I just really miss. That being said, I'm very much looking forward to time with my auntie. I think it will be just really nice to be with a family member after a few months.

I enjoyed the opportunity babysitting two French children this evening, the two I give English lessons to. Nothing like really testing my French with them, but they found it funny hearing me switch from English, to French, to a little bit of Spanish for fun. Being immersed so much here continues to widen my perspective and continually consciously or unconsciously adapt subtle aspects of the French culture in my life. Also, it was also nice to hear the kids dad say my French wasn't bad. Always nice to receive a compliment from a Frenchman, or local. From what I've observed, the French don't go giving out a lot of compliments. They will tell you exactly how it is, how they see it, so I've become very used to people also being straight with me whereas most Americans are not used to that. Plus I've become less obsessed and worried about being politically correct in my language; I am less afraid to be forward with my opinion.

Ma belle ville, Nantes pendant l'automn