Happy Holidays from Perpignan

I hope that everyone's been having a happy and healthy holiday season this year.

 I spent my Christmas having a low-key celebration in Perpignan, France.  For dinner, we made duck with a honey-orange sauce, mashed potatoes, sauteed veggies, and baked apples... not the typical Christmas dinner, but very tasty!

Perpignan was beautiful with lights throughout the streets, a small Christmas market, and a general air of excitement during the holidays.   I also enjoyed the ferris wheel they put next to the Castillet, in which you could see a wonderful panoramic view of Perpignan.

So anyways, just checking in here. And wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Cruisin' the Caribbean

Less than a month after arriving back in France, I left.

But don't be worried, I came back.  I traveled back across the big, blue ocean to join my family for a week-long cruise in the Caribbean to celebrate my grandma's 75th birthday.  (Happy Birthday Grandma!)

After an overnight layover in JFK for me, I met my family in the cruise port in San Juan, Puerto Rico to begin our journey through the sunny sea.  We had five destinations: St Bart's, St. Lucia, Antigua, Barbados, and Grenada, followed with one last day at sea aboard our fancy (and mostly meant for old(er) people) ship.  And I'm not exaggerating it being an older people's cruise... I was called a youngin' ... no joke!

Gustavia, Saint Barthélemy
St Bart's is the destination for the rich and famous.  As an overseas French territory, they use the euro, speak French, and take upon other various French cultural nuances such as topless beaches.  Here, we hiked around town to various forts (yes there were multiple) and ended up at Shell Beach, which is aptly named for the crunchy shells that make up the beach.  So on Day 1, I enjoyed the warm waters and sun with a nice adjustment into the French Caribbean.

Saint John's, Antigua
On the morning of our arrival in Antigua, also known as Wadadli by its natives, I opened my stateroom's curtains to a rainbow falling over the short, colorful houses by the harbor.  On this island, we explored the capital on foot.  After getting past the initial craziness of everyone trying to get in on the tourist business, we wound our way through town, towards the cathedral.  It was being restored so we couldn't go in, but we wondered around the small graveyard in front.  Then we found ourselves in the small historical museum, sharing insight into the island's natives, its geological and political history.  It was a West Indies island involved in the slave trade.  Although short, we decided to call it a day and returned to the ship, with a little shopping on our way.

Castries, Saint Lucia
Day 3 was a day for new adventures.  We took an organized tour that took us out of town to a natural national landmark called Pigeon Island, which is no longer technically an island due to a manmade causeway.  Upon arrival, we stripped down to our bathing suits, slathered on sunscreen, and got ready for our introduction to Snuba.  Snuba is a cross between snorkeling and snuba diving, where you breathe oxygen through an air line that's connected to the surface of the water.  Once showed the ins and outs of snuba along with the underwater hand instructions, we waded out from the beach and started swimming across the bottom of the ocean to 20 feet below the surface.  We saw many cool creatures including a spider crab, brain coral, a flounder fish that blended into the sand, a trumpeter fish, and many colorful smaller fishes.  After our short stint in the water, we continued to explore Pigeon Island with a hike to the fort that gave us a view of the island and dome volcano.

Bridgetown, Barbados
Ya man.  Barbados greeted us with that typical laid-back, friendly island feeling.  With a large group of my family, we started our day out with a rum tasting at the local distillery: Mount Gay.  It was interesting hearing some of the history of the distillery and how rum came about.  After the tour and tasting (which was a bit too much for me with straight rum - ick), I had the most delicious mojito of my life, expertly made by the resident rum-expert/ barman.  Setting out, we walked across the street (I'm not joking) and hit up the beach for a couple hours.  It was the local's beach... only a few others were there and certainly no tourists, with soft, fine sand and warm water.  We found some pieces of coral, and my brother rubbed sand into my hair (thanks bro, I was still finding sand a week later).  It was a day of island luxury, and before leaving, I had an interesting conversation with a local artist about his perspectives on vacations and island-living.  He was pretty nice and gifted me a bracelet even though I didn't buy his work.

Saint George's, Grenada
Grenada, the Island of Spices, lived up to its name.  We took a short hike, where our guide explained the origins of several spices including cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, and more.  We also learned that Grenada is known for its cocoa, and it ships its finest cocoa to only one location: Switzerland.  We were surrounded by delicious smells.  Then we arrived at Grande Anse Beach, which is 2-miles long, for some fun-in-the-water and relaxing time.  I love feeling the warm currents and sand between my toes, but don't know if I could ever get used to nasty salt water getting in my mouth!

Day at Sea
Our last day on our cruise ship through Oceania Cruises was spent at sea while we returned to Puerto Rico.  We took advantage of the chance to enjoy hanging out by the pool, and continuing to eat too much, as we had all week.  We ended the day with our last family dinner in the fancy Italian restaurant on board, so fancy that we received a whole separate menu to decide which olive oil and balsamic vinegar we would like for our bread.

It was a wonderful week seeing my family, exploring new places, and feeling the sand between my toes.  I am very thankful for such an experience. Thank you! (you know who you are)

First Day: Teaching Success

I've now started teaching in my three schools.  Under the language assistant program for the Ministry of Education in France, I teach 12 hours per week, which amounts to two whole days.  This year I'll be working Mondays and Thursdays.  I travel to an outlying village called Pia for the day on Mondays, and Thursdays I divide my time between two schools in Perpignan.

My first day in the schools went quite well.  It was a simple day, presenting myself and the USA/ Colorado, and checking the English levels of my students.  We reviewed numbers and the alphabet in most of my classes.  Whether they remember a lot or not, most of my elementary students have studied at least a tiny bit of English.  So everything is off to a good start, and Monday ended with a lot of smiles and waves and a pack of kids surrounding me with a big hug!  They all wanted to kiss my cheek.  As for the rest of my lessons, this semester is quite short for me since I've arrived so late; soon I'll be doing my Thanksgiving lesson, taking a week break for some quality family time (in the Caribbean!!), and then on to Christmas celebrations...

Walking home from my first day at school.

<3 Danielle

Perpignan - Encore

It has been a great year of travels and new friendships across the world.  Well, now I'm happy to announce that after spending a wonderful summer in Colorado (with a visit to Nebraska), I'm back in France for the year. 

This opportunity came about quite suddenly and I jumped into preparations quickly.  One month ago I received the offer, and only this week I arrived here back in Perpignan.  I'll be teaching in elementary schools for my second year.  They are three different schools than last year, but I'm living in the same city.  I arranged an apartment before I arrived, so I have a cute, homey two-bedroom apartment next to a large park that I'm sharing with another English assistant.  Already this week, I start half of my classes, and will start the others next week. 

Jumping into the swing of things is strange since it is all familiar and new at the same time.  I have few friends that are left in Perpignan, but still a good community of new assistants I'd like to get to know.  The town is largely the same, but a few of the familiar shops have changed (Monoprix is no longer Monoprix). 

So here's to wishing for another great year! Visitors are welcome and encouraged... I even have an extra bed :) Any one who'd like my address is welcome to send me an email. 

Hoping everyone is well.  Love you!

Perpignan - Presque Fini

My time is Perpignan is coming to a close.  That brings a lot of emotions, and I'm realizing that I'm not quite ready to leave.  

I'm missing home, that's for sure, but home is more about the people than the specific location.  Don't get me wrong... I love Colorado.  It's one of the best places in the world, hands down, and I'm looking forward to spending sunny summer days hiking in the mountains and warm evenings at Red Rocks.  That Colorado sunset is calling me for sure.  I'm also looking forward to peanut butter, salsa, and a great noodle bowl.  But I'm especially looking forward to being with my family, some of which I haven't seen in eight long months. 

So yes, I am looking forward to being home, but it still feels like it will be a vacation.  I want to come back to Europe, to France, maybe Perpignan but I'd like to explore other areas too.  I've been applying for jobs, in Europe and the States, but nothing has developed into anything beyond an application.  I'm not quite ready for a "grown-up" job or real post-graduation responsibilities.  That's not quite my style lately... I may continue exploring new places and meeting new people for as long as I can.  It's somewhat terrifying and yet completely exhilarating to not know where I'll be six months from now.  It's an interesting freedom to decide where I'll be next.

My time in Perpignan has been... memorable.  Yet again it's the people I've met that made my year so great.  I was lucky to arrive into a community of young adults from all over the world who were here to teach English.  I lived with others studying here, and through all the connections, I also became close with a group of French people, Perpignanais and others.  Everyone is going their own ways now, back to the U.S., Canada, the UK and more.  Others I'll be leaving behind, for the time being, but look forward to seeing them soon.  It's not a goodbye, but it'll also never be quite the same.  This year will forever stick in my memory as a time and place suspended in its own little space.

So Perpignan, for the times I've loved you and the time I just wanted to leave, the times I was homesick and the times I didn't want my time here to ever end, I salute you.  It's not a goodbye, it's only an à plus!

Last Days of Teaching

Well I've been slacking on my blog!

The biggest news of have: I'm finished teaching here in Perpignan, France.  This past week was my very last one with my 300 elementary students.  Sadly, I was sick on one of those days... and I called in (or rather wrote in) sick because I had completely lost my voice.  

I'll miss this view I saw coming home every Friday.

My official last day was Friday, which I spent at my two schools in outlying villages of Perpignan.  They are in Peyrestortes and Baixas, and the kids there were pretty well-behaved, more-so than my school in Perpignan anyways.  As I had taught about farm animals the week before ("Old McDonald had a farm, ee-i-ee-i-o"), I continued with more animals for our last day together.  We read a book illustrated by Eric Carle, they colored some animal worksheets, and we finished off (in my more advanced classes) with a bingo incorporating both numbers and animals.  Then it was time for goodbyes.

With one of my classes in Baixas.

On my last day, I received lots of cards from my students!  And I even got an ambushed group hug.  My school in Peyrestortes also presented me with a class picture with a note from each of the students.  All-in-all, it was a great experience, and I am very glad to have had this opportunity.  This year, I've definitely progressed in my teaching abilities and working with children.  I've had a great time teaching the 7 - 11 year old students English words and American cultural tidbits.  I think I'm pretty good at it!  And my kids thought so too if what they wrote in their cards was true! While I would actually like to stick around for another year with these elementary schools, that's not an option, so I will be returning to Colorado in a month, where I will be figuring out my next steps over the summer.  

To those in Colorado and the States, see you soon! And to those who I'll be leaving behind, I will never forget this time we spent together and I hope to see you soon too!

Paris Street Art

Paris, while known for its grand monuments, famous statues, and well-manicured gardens, possesses a quirky side as well through its Street Art.  This is the result of the younger generations wanting to continually make the city theirs.  It is a city of art and expression, old and new.  There is something for everyone, and this complexity and duality is what makes the city so beautiful.

Street Art (art urbain en français) is a contemporary art movement, where different forms of art manifest in public spaces.  This art is quite diverse and can vary from graffiti and murals to mosaics and sculptures. 

Paris exhibits some great examples of Street Art.  My favorite was this mural covering half the wall of a building which rested next to an old church.  It was a unique interplay of old and new, showing that both were beautiful and not necessarily exclusive.  I happened to be there at night, which gave an air of mystery to the face. 

I found this next example of street art around the corner from the Sacre-Coeur in Montmartre, which is one of the many extremely touristy parts of the city. 

Street Art can also be interactive, something with which the audience can play.  Here is a large chalkboard and a world map.

To me, Street Art is much more than a graffiti tag; there is an expression behind it.  It takes thought and makes the audience reflect.  In Paris, the relation between old and new is what makes this art so special as it adds to the beauty of the city, alongside the famous and ancient monuments.

Spring is in the Air

Bright blue skies, green grass, blooming flowers, and birds chirping... Spring is in the air!

Coming off an exceptionally mild winter here in France, spring is just around the corner and nature is getting ready.  Paris was beautiful over the past week, and I was amazed at all of the beautiful flowers in the gardens throughout the city.  It was a nice surprise, since Paris has the reputation for being rainy and cloudy during the winter months.  Apparently I had perfect timing.  One of my favorite blooms was the pink flowers on the trees pictured above. 

Boats on the water

The sun's warmth not only coaxed the beautiful flowers to appear, but the locals (and tourists) as well.  Everyone was out and about, lounging in the sun or enjoying sunny cafes.  I did both of course.  It was enjoyable taking a leisurely pace and strolling around the Eiffel Tower or through the Luxembourg Gardens.  It was just as rewarding to sit and enjoy a glass of champagne outside at a café as the sun went down after a few hours at the Louvre.

"Pelouse Autorisée": In many areas, it's illegal to sit on the grass.  Here it's allowed and enjoyed!

Beneath the Eiffel Tower, I watched this fountain put on a show with water cannons and rainbows while eating my four-cheese panini for lunch:

 

Soaking up the sun and living the life!

Paris Museums: Louvre and Musee d'Orsay

Any trip to Paris seems incomplete without a chance to admire the masterpieces of great artists.  The city's museums are some of the most well-known in the world with some of the most famous works of art. 

During my week in Paris, I took advantage of this by checking out the Louvre and Musee d'Orsay.  Even better, they were both free! As a young person between the ages of 18-25 who is currently living in the E.U., I was given free access to the museums with a simple flash of the visa in my passport. Can't beat that!

The Musee d'Orsay prides itself on its impressionist works, which is one of my favorite styles.  Van Gogh, Monet, and Degas are some of the big names there.  I also loved the main hall full of sculptures, mostly in marble.  While much can be said for the pieces of art inside the museum, the building itself is also incredibly beautiful.  It was an old train station in the heart of Paris that was converted into a place to house the great masterpieces.  The architecture and decoration of the building are interesting in itself.

 The Louvre is of course also one of the biggest museums in the world.  After spending over five hours at the Musee d'Orsay and running out of time in Paris, my traveling companion and I only had the time to roam through one wing of the museum.  Even in the one wing, multiple floors and sections had us confused and turned around with the endless pieces of art.  It is definitely a place to return to and see again... I'm not sure if I'll ever have time enough to appreciate every piece of art in the mammoth museum. 

La Tour Eiffel

I arrived back in Perpignan last night after a wonderful sejour in Paris for the past week.  It was a trip of twists and turns, dancing, monuments, catching up with friends, tasty French delights, American food cravings, art, and much more.  While I have so much to share, I'm going to start solely with the Eiffel Tower.

This was not my first time in Paris and I have seen the Eiffel Tower multiple times, but this time was special because it was my first time going to the very top.  Of course we hit a couple bumps in the road, which made it eventually even more special.  While we planned on hitting up the tower the first morning of our trip, our housing fell through last minute so we spent that morning looking for places to stay.  After booking the same hostel for one more night and figuring out the rest of our time later that day - we ended up in an airbnb apartment since the hostel was completely booked -, we woke up early on the second morning of our trip to make our way to the Eiffel Tower.  Early was a little difficult.  With three hours of sleep (we couldn't miss the opportunity to go out dancing the night before!), we hopped on the metro and made our way to the tourist hotspot, arriving around 10 am. 

When we arrived, the queue was already snaking its way out of the designated spot, but we were determined and we waited.  Finally after an hour and a half, we made our way up to the ticket counter, through the security checkpoint, and into the elevator.  Shoved towards the back, I peeked between the bodies crowded into the small room and saw us rising above the city of Paris.  Higher and higher.  We reached the midpoint where it was necessary to change elevators, which we rode to the very top.  Well it was almost the tippy top, but that's really just a radio antennae. 

It was amazing!  It's true that the Eiffel Tower is completely a tourist hotspot and way too busy, but nonetheless it is an amazing place.  From the top, we found the monuments in the city including the Louvre, Notre-Dame, Sacre Coeur, Arc de Triomphe, and Musee d'Orsay.  They resembled mere toys with little ants swarming around. 

After plenty of pictures and admiring the scenery, we rushed towards the bottom, taking an elevator from the top to the midpoint and walking down the stairs from there,  in order to arrive in time to pick up our keys for our new lodging and meet up with Colorado friends for lunch. 

But that's not all!  We came back to the tower later in our trip for a special photo shoot...

Snow and Sun

Today, I'm catching up on a few different things I wanted to share...with plenty of pictures too!

Two weekends ago was a whirlwind of fun.  It started right after work on Friday evening with an incredible dinner at Le Figuier.  My three-course dinner was mouthwatering to say the very least! I started with langoustine cooked with butter and garlic that I scooped out of the shell.  Second and most impressive was duck cut into strips, rolled together, and put on a rotisserie with a dried fruit and nut compote on top and complemented by baked potato wedges and a mini vegetable quiche.  For dessert, I had a delicate and delicious lemon meringue tart.  Although I probably will never taste such a delectable dinner again, I absolutely plan to go back to Le Figuier.  I can't believe I didn't know about it sooner, but it was special to discover it with their exceptional Valentine's menu.

The next morning, I woke up bright and early to catch a two-hour bus to Font Romeu, where I spent the day playing in the snow.  After hearing about the feet of snow coming down in Colorado and all of the good skiing that ensued, I felt more at home being in some snow, even if it was halfway across the world in the Pyrenees Mountains.  While I still think Colorado has the Pyrenees beat, it was a wonderful day among friends (who were styling some 80's one-piece snow suits they found at the flea market!).

Skiing at Font Romeu

Moving forward to this past weekend, it was too beautiful and sunny not to be outside.  I decided to check out a nearby lake at Villeneuve-de-la-Raho.  Again, I was joined by language assistant friends.  We had fun taking pictures of the nearby Canigou Mountain, strolling by the lake, and basking in the sun.

Basking in the sunshine at the lake.

Villeneuve-de-la-Raho

Well, I think that about sums it up; things that make me happy are 

friends, food, sunshine, being outside, and discovering new places!