February 2012
1 post
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January 2012
12 posts
6 tags
I'm in a fairytale, yes?
Call it karma, call it luck. Whatever it is, someone up there is looking after me. If it’s you, Grandma, thanks.
When I first arrived, I had planned to live in the dorms for my exchange. Who knew that I would get transported into a beautiful house with a great family? I’m one lucky s.o.b if I may say so myself. I moved in last weekend, and I got some quiet time to myself on Saturday while...
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I told you I would write it. It just took me...
If you didn’t already know, HoneyB is my best friend, besides from stoichio and GM. We spent a whole term apart, and I’m surprised either of us survived to be here right now. Crazy! To celebrate our union (sometimes it sounds like we really are getting married), we went to Paris for a quick weekend trip before our classes started!
There’s so much to do in Paris that there was no possible way...
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Bon matin, mes amis!
And so begins another week. Thankfully for me, I don’t have class until 2pm, so I get to lounge around and/or sleep in. I’ll definitely be doing that next Monday, since I had to wake up early enough to get one of my host family members to open one of my closet doors.
I’m completely serious. Doors in France hate me. Let me make you a list:
- my closet door (which put up a...
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Yes, I know. I finally have photos.
I finally found some time to start taking photos around Lille and to get myself lost for about an hour in this beautiful city. When the sun comes out, we all get really excited because it’s been quite cloudy recently. I also had nothing to do (which is a lie, because there were some translations waiting to be started on my desk) and I wasn’t going to waste this opportunity. Come on, let’s...
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So wait, how much time has passed?
The first week of classes are always something that we students look forward to and dread. I can safely say that during this past week, I have never wanted to go back to the UofA so badly. The week definitely got better as it passed, but I’ll fill you in on how it works. Quick review: at UofA, as a full-time student, you sign up for 3-6 courses. During the week, you attend that class 1-3...
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I promise there will be pictures soon.
Unlike Alberta, Lille (and perhaps Europe in general), receives much more rain that our city will ever receive. Not just rain, but some pretty cold winds. I have yet to figure out how to snap photos while trying not to die or kill the camera. Soon though, soon. This blog looks dull, but frankly, I’m a bigger fan of very clean and minimal blogs.
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Does it ever really sink in?
After one day of traveling, 1 train ride, and 2 flights, I am finally in my beloved country of France. With only 2 days under my belt, I can safely say that I have fallen into many traps already - I’ve developed a habit of j-walking (but everyone does it because cars don’t respect the green and red pedestrian lights), made a copious amounts of french mistakes in my speech, and stuck with...
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The last few hours are ticking away...
I really should be sleeping, but my nerves just won’t let my brain rest. It has been awhile since I’ve been this anxious and nervous about a trip. I keep remembering my last exchange to Rimouski, Québec. I remember the amount of stuff I was trying to pack into one suitcase, the utter terror about living on my own for the first time, and having next to no friends in a tiny city by...
Me? You really want to know?
Yes well, me. I suppose the majority of people reading this already know who I am, but everybody loves an intro.
My name is Serena, and I’m a student at the university of Alberta on an exchange at the Université Catholique de Lille in Lille, France. I study fine arts and french, hence why I’m in France. Frankly, I love the country enough anyway without needing a big excuse to...