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| My first picture of Strasbourg's Cathedral |
Let me recap the exciting blur of the last 48 hours:
First, getting to Strasbourg: if the train from Paris to Tours last month was a nightmare, this trip was ten times worse. Kat and I once again travelled together, and once more, we chose an earlier train than the Strasbourg-bound HC students. Ours was a good 15 euro cheaper, which we thought justified the fact that we would have to switch trains in Paris...
...Big mistake. The 8 a.m. train from Tours to Paris was insanely easy, of course (all difficult things trick you by starting out easily). We were the first ones on, so there was plenty of room for our luggage and barely any other passengers to beat on or off the train. We arrived at the Paris Montparnasse station and had an hour and a half to switch train stations to the Paris Gare de l'Est to catch our train to Strasbourg. Originally, Kat and I thought that there was a bus between the two Paris stations, but there isn't. Our only option? The metro.
This plan first backfired when I was entering the metro: I fed my ticket into the machine, the doors opened to let me through, and apparently I didn't go fast enough because the doors clamped down on my huge suitcase. My suitcase was stuck in the turnstile doors for so long and neither Kat nor I could pull it out. Luckily, a sweet old woman saw my distress, fed her metro ticket in my machine, and the doors opened to release my poor suitcase.
Our travel turmoil was far from over, though. Apparently, the French don't do elevators or escalators to get to the metro. They use stairs. And lots of 'em.
So Kat and I were stuck lugging all suitcases and duffels down (AND UP) countless numbers of stairs to get to the right metro platform. Let me assure you (I now have personal experience) that it is NOT easy and NOT worth saving 15 euro when you have to drag 60+ pounds of luggage up and down six different staircases.
The metro was crowded of course, so getting on and off the train with all our bags was a hassle. However, getting on our final train bound for Strasbourg was another nightmare. The train was completely booked and every passenger seemed to have brought along a huge suitcase of their own. Kat and I had booked lower-level seats on the train, but there were so many people (suitcases up and down the aisles, we had to jump over them) that we were forced to find a place for our luggage on the second-level: hence, another time dragging them up more stairs. It's a good thing we're young.
All-in-all, the journey was exhausting and I was so relieved to arrive in Strasbourg. Happily, Malou, our French study-abroad coordinator, was at the station with our families to greet us.
My family is so sweet! Marlene and Raymond are my new host parents. They have four children, but the youngest is 35 and the oldest is 47 (my host parents themselves being 66 and 67 years old), so I don't have any siblings in the house with me. My room is so cute, as well!
I now live in the suburbs of Strasbourg, really. It's a real neighborhood full of peachy-pink little cupcake houses in the shadow of the glass-and-steel European Parliament building. I seem to be the furthest away of all the Holy Cross girls, unfortunately. Everyone else is within a 10-minute walking distance of each other, and then there's me, way far away. My commute isn't too far, though! The tram system in Strasbourg is absolutely fantastic (and Malou also gave us year-long tram passes), so while I'm nearly 40 minutes to the center city by walking, I'm only a 5-minute walk and 10-minute tram ride away!
Last night, my host parents Marlene and Raymond took me out to dinner (accompanied by their youngest daughter, Lucretia). We had pizza and red wine (so sparkly and sweet--finally a red wine that I enjoy!) at an Italian restaurant where they know the owners. It was awkward at first, just as it was when I first arrived in Tours. I feel as if I've suddenly regressed after being uprooted--the last two weeks in Tours, I was finally comfortable in my host family's house, and I was a lot more outgoing, but last night's dinner was more uncomfortable silence and eating punctuated by a few questions. I hope the awkwardness disappears soon, because I'm here for the next 10 months!
Today, nothing was on the schedule. Kat and I met the other Holy Cross girls (Lizzie, Jacqueline, Marissa, Melissa, Arianna, and Alex) at the Cathedrale de Notre Dame after lunch, and we just walked around Strasbourg for a while. What I learned: there are A TON of stores here, begging me to spend money! (I will resist... for now, at least).
Another thing I learned: Strasbourg is a gorgeous city. Very photogenic, although the pictures don't do it justice -- I would know, as I've been staring at them for the past few months.
The 7 of us also chilled for a while at a café, which was so very French of us. (Alex was actually on a trip this afternoon with her new host family, so she wasn't there).
I took the tram back home for dinner, but around 9 p.m., I met up with Kat in the city once more. Tonight, September 1st, was the last night of lighting up the Cathedrale as it is basically the end of summer. There was a huge spectacle with dancers up in front of the church and acrobats soaring through the air (in harnesses held up by a giant crane) and colorful lights illuminating the beautiful façade. The show lasted for nearly an hour. Afterwards, Kat and I just explored some more of the city, although it was freezing and all the shops were closed (even during the day, though, Sunday is not the day to go shopping in France, as 99% of stores are shut).
And now, I'm back home! Home... I guess I can't really call this city or even this house "home" quite yet, but hopefully I will by the end of these ten months -- or even better, by the end of September!
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