Things I'll Miss Most About France

1) THE PEOPLE. The 23 other people in my SUNDEF 44 (Notre Dame) group: Mackenzie, Hilary, Paul, Anna, Dennis, Kiany, Lindsay, Ellie, Maria, Charlie, Pablo, Andrea, Claudia, Trigg, Justine, Laure, Laura, Katrina, Matt, Kelly, Sarah, Shannon were amazing. I can honestly say that every single one of these people were incredible, and I felt so blessed to be able to share my experience in France with them. It is comforting to me that all of them will be at Notre Dame next year and this isn't a permanent goodbye.
My host family was so kind and I will miss them (that and being colocataires with Hilary). I have met some fabulous people on my travels, and it makes me sad that I may never see them again. I am told that such is life, meeting people along the way and leaving them behind, keeping the memories that we shared. Maybe it is and maybe it isn't. I hope I get to someday run across a few of them.

2) The food. Does this really surprise anyone? Macarons (from Louvigny in Angers and LaDuree in Paris), chocolate, bread, cheese (chevre is my favorite, and I now actually like Roquefort!), the wine, the cidre (hard cider, kind of hard to find in the US), tarte au citron, mousse au chocolat, crepes and galettes (I highly recommend a smoked salmon and chevre galette), quiche, kir royals, falafel/hummus (yes I know they're not actually French, but kebab shops are everywhere), socca, anything and everything with salted caramel on it. I'm proud to say that I lived in a country that has baguette competitions and a cheese course exists. Friends and family, take comfort that I am bringing back recipes that we made with my French host mom during cooking classes, and I will be mastering the art of the macaron back in the US. Feel free to be a part of my experimentations :)

3) The pace of life. Read: slower.

4) The architecture and parks! Just wandering around Angers is fun for me. Everything is so pretty here, and our group loved to have picnics and parties in le Jardin du Mail, a beautiful park in Angers.

5) Aperitif, or "apero" for short. It's kind of like happy hour, except everyone young and old does it. After work or school, people go to brasseries, cafes, or restaurants to sit out and have a drink, whether a coke, a beer, a glass of wine, or (my favorite) a kir/kir royal. Life slows down, and often little snacks ("amuse bouches") are served. ahh.

6) Speaking in hand gestures. And Franglais/Franglish. Or just speaking French period.

7) Learning things in every single conversation I have with someone. I think I probably learned more just talking to people than in my French classes.

8) The -ies. Fromagerie, Boulangerie, Patisserie, on and on. You may think that this is a repeat of "the Food", but I love that France still has some uniqueness. If you want cheese, go to a cheese store. If you want bread, the bread store. There's something I just love about it. You develop a relationship with the merchants if you're a regular. You just don't get the same feeling by going into a Target or a Walmart.

9) The words "merde" and "putain." :) I will still be using these in everyday vocab.

10) Getting into language and/or cultural mix-ups. From mispronouncing words to being scolded for keeping my bread on my plate instead of on the table, it will definitely be harder to do that in back in the US.

11) FREEEEEDOM. Not that I don't have it in the US, but homework here was at a minimum to say the least, I didn't feel the need to join clubs or anything here, and I could just spend my days enjoying a good book, the many gardens/parks in Angers, and the weekends travelling to anywhere I could get a cheap ticket. Life doesn't get any better than that.

12) Open air markets. French people probably think Americans are a bunch of idiots for this, and some places do have farmers' markets, but they usually pale in comparison to the wonders of the French markets: spices, fruits, vegetables, cheese, bread, pastries, fish, meats, olive oils, everything.

13) Being offered wine for both lunch and dinner. Even our lunches at school would always offer a pitcher of wine on the table, and my host dad Alain would always have a new bottle waiting for us at family dinners. Le sigh.

14) Living in a city with a castle. How many people can say that?!

15) Having "old" mean "really old." Let me clarify: When a French person (or European person in general) says there's a really old something-or-other, it means it's from anywhere from B.C. to the 1700s. Americans consider stuff from the Civil War to be "old." Yeah....not exactly.

I really, really, really hate saying goodbye to people. Also, I don't know whether to get a different blog name for when I'm in Dublin this sumer (and beyond!) or keep the same blog. I mean, "A Nebraskan in France" is a little misleading when I'm actually in Ireland. I would probably change it to something a little more location-neutral. Suggestions? Thoughts? Comments? Insults? Compliments?

Bisous!
Claire