Blogs from Alsace, France, Europe - page 33

Bonjour à tous ! (Hello everyone) Last week was my first official week of teaching and I loved it! I like all my students and I think it will be a fun school year! I ate in the school cafeteria last Tuesday and Thursday and it was okay. You have to reserve a meal for the days you will be eating at the cafeteria so I wrote a check and told them I’ll be eating there every Tuesday and Thursday. The cafeteria at Lycée Bugatti is pretty similar to school cafeterias at home. Since I’m a teacher I don’t have to wait in line, which I didn’t know the first day I went until one of my students saw me standing in line and told me I could pass through and enter. What a nice and ... read more

Straßburg: Grande île, originally known as Argentorate with it's history spanning 700,000 years. This celtic civilization of Rhénanie was ideally located in the middle of the Rhine trench. The waterways aided in north-south access from Italy to Holland from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance (12-13th centuries) & is a fine example of Catholic/Protestant co-existence with Franco-German culture. Gorgeous city! An island on the Ill (ILL) river surrounded by the Vosges Mt's & the Black Forest, one would never know, without being told, it's one of the most atmospherically polluted cities in France. While the mountains & forest block the movement of wind, there is no visible smog, the river appears clean, the scent of the city is fresh... a proper looking city comparable to any in Switzerland as far as I'm concerned- A real feat ... read more

Hello! What a busy week I’ve had! I’ve just returned from a morning at the lycée(high school) and today I met the “Terminale” class I’ll be working with, which would be our senior year of high school in the US. They are an energetic group of boys and one girl but they seem excited to have me here as the assistant. Once I’ve met all the classes, then I’ll start teaching. Monday morning, I went to the Bureau des Étrangers in Mulhouse (the office for foreigners) to hand in all my paperwork so I can get my carte de séjour. It’s such a long process here in France that I received a “Récépissé de Demande de Carte de Séjour,” which is temporary, until I get the real thing. Who knows when that will be? That afternoon ... read more

Hello again! I've had a great first week in Mulhouse and everything is going well. I'm finally all settled into my apartment and getting more and more familiar with the city and how to get around. Wednesday I met the running club I'm going to join. I think they meet every Tuesday and Thursday evening, so that will be nice to belong to a club for French people who run also. They were very nice and were so happy to meet me and welcome me to Illzach. I'm very excited! While I'm here in France I've decided I would like to participate in some 5K and 10K races. I found a 10K race in November and all runners receive a bottle of wine in addition to other goodies. Also, my goal for the Spring before I ... read more

La Trois Roses - La Petite Pierre After last nights escapades, it was time for a quieter day! However, I bought a wireless mouse yesterday in the supermarket, and when I opened it, it had obviously been used and returned as damaged, as it certainly didn't work. Therefore after breakfast we had to return to the shop to exchange it, plus find a garage who might be able to replace both dipped headlights. The supermarket was relatively easy to sort out, I had practiced what I needed to say and managed to exchange the mouse. Fortunately the guy who came to speak to me, spoke good English so in addition, I was able to explain the problem. As for the garage, I had tried to get replacement bulbs in the supermarket, which they had, but trying ... read more