Je suis arrivée en Europe!
A week ago I left Minneapolis with a lot of nervous, excited energy.
I flew to Reykjavik, Iceland and then to Paris, France. In Paris I stayed with some friends of Claire Boyle, a friend I have stayed in touch with through middle school, high school and beyond (I couldn’t stay with her, because her temporary living situation is a tiny apartment!). Since it wasn’t my first time in Paris, I wasn’t concerned with doing the typical touristy stuff. We ate good food and drank good wine, and wandered around the city.
I was in Paris for 24 hours before hauling my heavy luggage to the train station, en route to Turin, Italy. I stayed in Turin for 4 full days, which were filled with pizza, pasta and dear friends. Here’s a picture of Friday night aperitivo – basically Italian happy hour:
Since I’d also visited Turin before, I’d seen most of the tourist attractions, so spent time reconnecting with friends, and even got to see one of my friends perform with his band, Alephant! Check them out on YouTube 🙂 I also went to the small Italian countryside town of Caluso to experience their annual wine festival.
This morning I traveled to Clermont-Ferrand from Turin by train, which was about a 7 hour journey. Thanks to a friend of a mutual friend, (I owe you, Jenny Keil!) I am staying with an American family in the interim period between my arrival and landing an apartment in Clermont-Ferrand. The husband/father of the family is employed by Michelin, which is headquartered here in Clermont-Ferrand; most of the city’s expats are connected to Michelin.
Tomorrow I start the process of getting a French phone plan and setting up apartment visits. My roommate Samantha, who is an English teaching assistant as well, arrives on Saturday! I start my job the first week of October. Here’s the view from where I stand right now:
Thanks for reading 🙂
Alia
mes pensées éparpillées 