1. The people
The people here are so incredibly nice. I have made some really incredible new friends here in France, including both Americans and French. Thanks to them, I no longer get homesick! When I first came to France, I never thought this place could ever feel like home but all that has changed :)
2. Milk is unrefigerated
What an ingenious idea! When buying milk from the store, milk doesn't expire for two or three months. You buy it off the shelf and you can keep it in the cupboard until you open it. Once open, it has to be refigerated. But, just think about how much money would be saved in the U.S.A. if we didn't spend so much on the ridgerated transportation of milk and the rifdgeration of the product in stores!
3. People think I'm German
Some people think I look German and other people think that I have a German accent because of the way I pronounce my R's...
4. Living in the metaphorical middle of nowhere
Chateau Thierry has a whopping population of 15,000 people. It is a very quiet, tame little town. It is so quaint and in the heart of wine country. Hardly anybody speaks English. Never in my life have I lived somewhere so small, which has been an experience in and of itself on so many levels...
5. The view from my balcony
I love to start my mornings watching the sunrise sitting crosslegged drinking coffee on my balcony. I never used to be a morning person, but it's almost magical watching a blanket of fog slowly evaporate and revealing Chateau's treasures: the old castle, the little houses with red roofs, vallies of the most vibrant green I've ever seen...
6. Really green fields
There is something that is grown here that is really really green, the most vibrant green I have ever seen. Whether it is a type of grape or another type of agricultural product that is grown here... I have no idea, but whatever this plant is - it is grown in abundance here and the result is a very vibrant almost neon green that you just want to sink your teeth into it... Next thing I have to do, I have to ask someone what it is that is making these fields so beautiful. But the "problem" is I always have so many questions, that I never seem to have time to get them all answered :)
7. Teaching English
I have been given a lot of freedom in teaching English. Consequently, I have been able to choose a lot of the subject matter that I work with with my students and have researched so many interesting subjects... Never before have I ever learned so much about my own history or my own culture... Additionally, the students are just wonderful.
8. Walking everywhere
I love not driving. I am probably one of the worst drivers ever. It sure is nice being able to walk everywhere that I need to go!
9. Sitting down to eat
On one of my first here in France, I grabbed a granola bar because I was hungry. I was waiting for the train and pulled out my granola bar and started eating it. Wow, I got so many strange looks... I felt so out of place and like an alien. What was wrong with me? Did I have a booger hanging out of my nose? And then it dawned on me, people in France don't eat on the go. When people eat, they sit down at a table and really just savor every single bite. Personally, I think this is just awesome and it is a practice that I have adopted for every single time I'm hungry now.
In contrast, America is so Go Go Go that before I never would have thought twice about grabbing something at 7-11 and eating it on my way to wherever I was going next... It's funny to think that something as simple as sitting down and eating could be a culture shock... :)
10. Social 24/7
You'd think that living in a small town would leave me lonely, but I'm never alone. I'm either hanging out with the professors, my roommate, new friends or I am just out and about. It's amazing the variety of people I interact with, and I'm really starting to appreciate the rainbow of opinions and cultural perspectives I've been introduced to. Quote of the week? "Life begins at the end of your comfort zone." Neale Donald Walsch
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