Trucking Along

Bonjour!

A few little things to catch you all up on :)

First of all SORRY UNCLE STEVE I totally didn't realise I wasn't supposed to open it until Christmas I promise I will hide it from myself until Christmas Day :)

Also, my local chapter of AFS has a new arrival! Actually we have three, but one of them is a girl called Maria from Costa Rica and she is going to my school here! We only had the opportunity to meet up briefly yesterday but she's really nice and we'll be seeing each other again this weekend at the  AFS camp in Bordeaux.

Also, we had our conseil de classe, which is where the two elected student representatives of the class and every single teacher all meet up and discuss the class in general and all of the students one by one. We will all be getting reports soon but the two elected class representatives took notes on all of us (our average scores, teachers comments, etc) and gave them to us in class and I totally have an average of 12.68 out of 20 and I got an encouragement! Which is like a praise thing, not the best you can get but not bad either :)

Also, I had a great weekend. Saturday night I went with my host brother Antoine to see the Hunger Games 2 in the cinema, and it was fantastic! Really an enjoyable movie and I followed the whole story no problem at all :) got back and had dinner at ten at night and watched some of the Miss France competition

Then Sunday, my host parents and I went to St John de Luz. THAT was an incredible day, St John de Luz is absolutely mindblowing and I am DETERMINED to go back there someday. The weather was perfect and we had paninis and ice cream for lunch and took a look around some shops and walked along the beach and we walked up to this point at the end of the bay where you could do a perfect 360 of the entire waterfront and the sea it was just amazing.

Voilà. That's the business of late, I'll do another post after the camp to let you know how it all went and stop being lazy and put up some pictures of the snow with Taryn and St John de Luz :)

Stay super,
Holly :)

Snow!

Okay so there are a few things to cover in this post.

The first is the snow. My goodness was it cold but WOW probably one of the most fun single days I have had here in France a serious, heartfelt, massive THANK YOU to Taryn and her incredible host mother Sylvie for taking me, I really had such a great time. We had a snowball fight and make snow angels and this awesome beans little kid let us have a turn on his luge thing it was just magical.

The rest of the sleepover was great too, did some shopping and caught up with some people from AFS New Zealand. And Taryn cut me a fringe!! I hope I can hang with her some more before I go, she's really been such a great friend to have here and I will legitimately miss her like crazy when I leave.

Been pretty chill apart from that, keeping up with school and all. Im going to the theatre tonight and eating in town with the girls before which will be fun. Also, I don't have enough details yet to elaborate much here yet but a French teacher from Rosehill College is coming here! We're going to meet up and she has a project in mind that I think will be really amazing, I'll let you all know more a bit later :)

It's around eight weeks now until I go home, and I'm in two minds about it. On one hand, the thought of seeing my family and friends again gives me excited butterflies every bit as strong as I had about coming here. On the other, this place is really amazing and it's hard to imagine that I'm just going to drop it so soon. That I might never do these daily things I love so much, crossing the road when I walk to school just to see the fish in the stream, leaning against the radiators before class starts until the teacher has to actually tell us to take our seats, sneaking my headphones into English and sleeping for an hour (sorry but I mean what's the use?). I can't get my around the fact that that's all going to just STOP.

Saying that, I do realise that this time I've been given here was a massive, unbelievable gift and that nothing could make it not worth coming here. Really, truly, thank you NZ ministry of education for just doing this award, and for giving it to lowly me. I promise I will always pay all of my taxes and take a serious interest in elections when I'm 18.

Also, a massive thank you to the people that have kept me sane while I'm here. It's so good to here from people back home, massive thank you to beautiful, entertaining, hilarious, magical SARAH WATSON whom I love for all your promises of the fun things we will do when I get back, so life won't seem dull by comparison (live is never dull with us haha)

AND CHEERS UNCLE STEVE AND FAMILY for the AWESOME amazing Christmas present, my host family loved the tree decorations, they're on there now, and I am really really truly grateful for the necklace (it's Saint Christopher readers, the patron saint of travellers).

Also, an emphatic, primary school style round of applause that actually forms a circle in the air to AFS New Zealand, for doing that predeparture camp so that I have friends in countries like Spain, and Sweden and America and Venezuela that I can just chat to. I love keeping up with everyone, this returnee camp is going to be mindblowing :)

That wraps it up for today kids. The usual love and kisses to you all, sorry I can't do personal shout outs to everyone. If you're keeping in contact with me, that's you I'm talking to :)

Stay Super,
Holly :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

Sorry I haven't updated in a while things are going pretty smoothly here, all settled in and everything :)

So yeah, a MASSIVE, MASSIVE happy birthday (Bon Anniversaire) to my Dad back in New Zealand, I miss you like crazy but  I will see you in not too long now, the hardest bit is over

 :) hope you had a fun day :) love you lots

Also, happy birthday for two days ago to my cousin Michaela :)

Not a whole lot to tell you all about, been getting back into the rhythm of school (the terms here are only seven weeks thank goodness, I'm only four weeks away form the Christmas holidays). I got an 11.5 out if 20 in a test! I know what you're all thinking, English class. In fact: FRENCH. It was a test on a French Poem and I was marked (and Mr Rochelois was insistent on this) JUST LIKE THE OTHER STUDENTS.

Speaking of the language, I think I have the hang of it now. I don't sound at all fluent when I speak but I can pretty much say anything I want to say and with most people I speak solely in French :) It certainly makes class more bearable being able to understand what the teachers are saying. That obviously doesn't include Chinese, I have abandoned all hope of picking up anything other than hello.

Upcoming events are pretty few and far between but I'll let y'all know anyway :) I have another camp in Bordaux in three weeks, and the weekend after that I start the holidays :) I'll be spending the few days before and during Christmas in Poitier with the extended host family, and spending Boxing Day not far from Pau with the other side of the extended host family. Alexia has invited me to hang out with her those holidays too, and hopefully I can spend some time with Taryn as well :)

Also note worthy, I have officially passed the half way mark, I think I have around ten weeks left here! (I'm trying not to count the days). Leaving is going to be really hard I've become quite close with a few people here, but I'll be thrilled to see my family and friends back home too :) I think that exchanges really teach you to appreciate what you have, I certainly feel like I do now :)

That's it for now,
Happy Birthday again Dad! I hope you get to see this on your birthday Skype isn't sending my messages but I'll send you an email anyway and hope that you check it :)

Stay Super,
Holly :)

Carousel!!

Yeah, I went on a carousel. Whatever.

So it's officially the end of the holidays, but these two weeks have been chocked and absolutely fantastic. I'm going to give you a fairly brief account of events:

Stayed the night at Alexias! Her Dad made genuine French cuisine for us it was so so so unbelievably amazing we had foie gras, duck and wow all the French cheese. It was really incredible and the night was so much fun, I feel so lucky to have the friends that I have here.

Did a double sleepover at Taryns! First night at hers, second at mine :) it was really fun I LOVE taking the train by myself I feel so independent :) We did some shopping, rode on a carousel in Tarbes (oh wow it was fun) and just talked about everything. Im so happy that she lives just down the way from me, I didn't really get to know her that much at the departure camp (which sucks because she's amazing) but now I'd easily call her my best friend from AFS.

Met my extended host family on My host mothers side. It was certainly an interesting day, we had lunch and dinner at her mothers house (I have a host grandmother! And a grandfather they're adorable). I really liked Isabelle too, the sister-in-law of my host mother, she was really nice :) Things got loud when an uncle called Riche McCaw a b@$#% though (I defended him sincerely). Next weekend is a big match between the All Blacks and France! NZ is totally going to own ;)

Got invited to lunch with some friends of our neighbours (I didn't understand how we knew anyone there but we all made friends) which was really really nice too. They live in a Spanish style MANSION in the hills, looking out over the Pyrenees and all. I ate so much but it was all so good (I'm going to try to stop describing food on this blog I do it too much).

So that's basically a catch up. I also did an anthology of poetry in French (I'm supposed to be finishing it now but blog takes priority). I've been doing some hardcore Skyping too, thanks to everyone I Skyped, you're all thoroughly interesting to talk to I promise.


Pretty big post for so little news but hey, people are still reading :) Im going to do something emotional and feelsy for the next one, I've been getting all thinky and stuff :)

Stay super,
Ciaaaoooo :$

City of Lights and Love

My goodness I have a lot to tell you all about.

So I have been back in Pau for a few hours, I got back at midnight last night (the train was delayed four hours!). Paris was unbelievable. Normally I try not to get my hopes up about things like that, I tried to expect Paris to be a little disappointing and not really all that I had hoped for, but it really was. It was everything I ever hoped it would be, we're talking since I was ten or eleven years old, and I am ETERNALLY grateful that I had the opportunity to go back there.

I can't give you all the details, but I'll give you the highlights for me:

1. The first night the family that we were staying with (thank you Facomprez family!) took us to dinner in this gorgeous little genuine Italian restaurant in some little side street of Paris and afterwards we went for a walk and saw the city lit up at night, from the top of the hill of Sacre-Cœur. It was really amazing. We also saw the square with all of the impressionist artists at night it was really really cool.

2. Went into the Louvre, saw in person the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo, it was really surreal for me to be standing IN FRONT of these artworks whose names are known all over the world. I really loved the Venus de Milo, and the other art works in the Louvre was beautiful too.

3. Went into the Notre-Dame cathedral, again incredible. There was a service happening while I was in there which was neat to see, the cathedral is HUGE HUGE HUGE and really intricately designed and the stained glass windows were mindblowing detailed.

4. Went up the Eiffel Tower. This was really the best part of Paris for me, ever since I was a little girl, Paris was the city that I most wanted to visit and the symbol of Paris for me was the Eiffel Tower. It was amazing to be able to TOUCH it, and see the entire city from it. I had an INCREDIBLE hot chocolate up there too with like a cup of whipped cream on top. I can best describe the moment as euphoria.

Me and Marion up the Eiffel Tower

Obviously we did other things, there is such a variety of different scenes in Paris, it's not all gothic architecture and monuments. Took the métro and the buses, did some shopping (H&M Paris!) and generally just wandered around. There is a gorgeous little network of alleyways with weird international restaurants and lights everywhere in the Latin Quarter that I particularly loved. One day I'll revisit the city and go back there.

So it's not really a huge post for such a big event but, as ever, if you want any more details hit me up. I do have other news outside of Paris too. MASSIVE shout out to Uncle Steve, Aunty Claire, Liam, Michaela and Thomas for the postcard from Samoa! I hope you guys had an amazing time, keep an eye on your letterbox :)

Also just a general thank you to everyone who is keeping in contact. There are those of you that I didn't really expect to keep chatting to me while I was overseas and I am flattered that you like me enough to keep it going :) Merci beaucoup.

Im on holidays for two weeks now! Don't have many plans, want to spend a night with Taryn next week but apart from that I'm free as a bird. I might go shopping with Marion, maybe hit up the French cinema one day? It's good to be free :)

Stay Super,
Holly :)

Camp in Bordeaux

So I totally mislead you with the title. You're thinking inner city, gorgeous architecture, cute cafes. Not really. we're talking mini outer suburb AUSTENSE, a massive two storied house in the middle of the forest, next to a gorgeous lake. The house was old and cream coloured with blue shutters very French. The downside was that there were cockroaches and spiders everywhere and we had to cut firewood every half an hour to keep everyone warm haha.

Seriously though I enjoyed this weekend an indecent amount. Perhaps one of the most enjoyable nights of my life, I am so crazy glad I am involved with AFS. I hung out with Czech David, Hungarian Richard and French Foucauld. And met up with some of the girls I roomed with in Paris - Brazilian Maria, Norwegian Vilde, Japanese Eri. I'll post a photo of the camp in this space once it goes up online - we're going to be in the Sud-Ouest Newspaper!

The accuiellis, gosh I think that's how you spell it (kids from overseas) did games and activities together, getting to know each other and talking about what we like/don't like about France, one on one interviews about how things are going, crazy French dancing games outside in the rain etc. We wrote letters to ourselves to read at the end of our exchanges. The partants (french kids going overseas) did other stuff, including my host sister Marion - who passed the English test to go into America! It doesn't mean she will but she is allowed to.

Im going to volunteer for AFS as SOON as I get back into New Zealand, the volunteers at this camp were absolutely amazing, treating us like equals and sharing stories and being so understanding I can actually not wait for the next camp in December.

Other camp activities included a talent show (I did a magic trick with cards and a boy called Alexi), silent breakfast with no conventional cutlery (Johan was using a mug to scoop his cereal out of the silicon cake mould he was using as a bowl into his mouth I couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard). And helping to prepare dinner too! I like cooking so it totally wasn't a chore for me, I was involved in the fruit salad, the capsicum and tomato sauce and something with garlic I never really saw.

So yeah, it would take the longest post ever ever to explain in full all of the things I did this weekend, you should see how many pages I filled in my diary, but that's the gist. There are so many more notes I want to make but I am practising restraint. As ever, if anyone is curious, hit me up for details.

Next post will be sometime next week because in exactly six days Marion and I depart for Paris. Casually. More details on that as I receive them, just know that I am crazy excited to see Paris again, and hang out one on one with Marion (hearing some of the horror stories from the other accuiellis I feel so sorry for them, but crazy happy for me because she is such an awesome host sister).

Stay Super,
Holly :)

Un Mois

Salut,

Un Mois means one month in French, and to celebrate my one month anniversary here in France, Taryn and I went ALL out shopping in Pau and she stayed the night at mine afterwards :)

I bought clothes from Jennyfer, Bershka and H&M and some shoes from a shoe place I don't remember but they're cute trust me :) It was beautiful weather, apart form two mini torrents that sent us running like absolute butters from bar shelter to bar shelter until we found a cafe and sat down to eat. And on Sunday Taryn and I made an Oreo cheesecake because master chefs.

It was awesome to see someone familiar after so long without it, and incredibly to talk (and we talked for HOURS) about everything we'd been up to. Taryn is now officially the person who knows the most about my exchange so far, and her stories were so, so, so interesting too.

So this month felt like it absolutely flew by. 30 days just doesn't take as long as it used to. My French has definitively improved, even if I don't form the negative how I was taught in class (omg nobody uses the "ne" it's nuts). Keeping busy has helped me a whole lot and I'm enjoying this so, so much now. I wouldn't give up my time here for anything in the world, and I just know that come January I am going to be so sad to leave this place.

I've been keeping a journal too, and today for the first time I went back and read some of what I had written from the beginning of my exchange. Things have changed so much, the initial emotional turbulence has subsided into a kind of constant happiness. I'm so AWARE of how much fun I am having, and how lucky I am to have been giving every opportunity that I have been given. I couldn't have asked for a better setting for my exchange.

Also, I hit 1000 page views just the other day, and my blog is now officially linked on the AFS website, which is awesome. Thanks everybody for checking in, I'm trying my hardest to keep you all perfectly up to date but if you ever have any questions, or comments or you just want to harass me a bit, leave a comment here, on my Facebook, or my email (missanne@hotmail.co.nz). I swear I'm actually a pretty nice person, I will reply.

Stay Super,
Holly