an overdue update

Wow. It's been a long time since I posted, and for once, I didn't mean to let it go this long, and I actually had things to say!

Let's start with school. Classes are going well. I really like the 2nd year students so far. The groups changed after the first week (and for all I know, they're still changing), so I lost a few that I clicked with straight away, but I think in general, they will be a nice bunch. They better be anyway, because the classes are huge! I'm still using my How I Met Your Mother lesson with my 1st years, and while they are loving it, re-watching the episode is basically driving me mad now. One more week of it (thanks, Jane). Finally, I have come to the conclusion that my M2 students (the oldest ones) are the most immature out of all my classes. They are really nice, but they freak out easily and just really need to grow up. I've started giving private lessons to one of them though, and he's really kind, mature, and motivated.

Next up, English Nights. They've pretty much dropped off. No students are coming. Though this week, I had an email from one of Jane's students asking for more info. The poor guy came and sat with Hannah, Denise, and I. I don't know how (or even if) he kept up with us. However, we seemed to have scared him off as he said he's coming next week and then invited us along to a party that my students are doing at a bar. We'll see.

Last weekend, I went to Paris. It was a lovely trip. I stayed with a friend from Middlebury, and we enjoyed falafel from Maoz soon after my arrival. The next day, thanks to Emily, a bunch of us went to Disneyland! Talk about excitement! We ended up breaking up into two groups, and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Though the park was packed! Everything had very long waits! But I'm used to that, I come from Cedar Point territory. The group Emily and I were in headed back to Paris early evening, and I went off to meet my Brazilian friend for drinks. His friends were really nice and included a very eclectic mix of cultures and people. I enjoyed it. The night ended with him, his very drunk friend (who insisted on speaking English), and myself wandering the streets of Paris for a bit. Good times.

Sunday, my Midd friend and I took a brief trip to the Champs Elysees to hit up basically some of the only open stores in Paris. After being quickly joined by Emily for a bit, I headed back to my friend's to get my bag. I actually did get an extra hour in Paris than planned, because my Brazilian friend offered to drive me back to Valenciennes. Since he was staying with a friend near Creil (about 25 min by train from Paris), I just had to meet him there. Sweet! While the trip ended up taking longer than the TGV, it was a lot more fun (and cheaper - I just paid to get to Creil and then he wouldn't except any gas or toll money). We missed a turn at one point and spent about an hour driving through very cute tiny villages. Saw some of the French countryside. Good conversation was had. It was fun.

The weather has been kind of gorgeous this week. Yesterday, we even managed to grab a drink out on a terrace. It's been awhile since we really wanted to do that. Then, yesterday evening, I went to a Twapero. Basically, it's a meetup for people on Twitter for an apero. My friend J. was going which made me more inclined to go. It turned out to be a good time. There were seven of us in all, and there was no awkwardness or anything. The conversation flowed easily, and these guys (yep, not only was I the only American, I was also the only girl) were such big geeks. Cool geeks though.

Tonight, I am making Sloppy Joes and Jello chocolate pudding for some friends here. Hopefully, they're not grossed out too much. Then, tomorrow, normally, I am going with my Brazilian friend to Dunkerque to check out the Carnival there. Shall be fun.