Toulouse: duck, record shopping, and Bernie's Saloon

Toulouse - August 31 - Sept 2

Toulouse was a wonderful last stop in France! We arrived by train around 3:00 on Sunday, where Bernard cheerfully picked us up. It was so great to see him and see Toulouse again. We had a nice lunch pizza and checked out the saloon for the first time! It was quite impressive. With country's music playing and a barbecue preparing duck for the evening, it felt like we we're almost in the US!

Sunday afternoon, we had some time before dinner to walk around the city. We saw St. Sernin and the relics, and then made our way to the Capitol. Toulouse feels like an old home. When we returned back to Bernard's, we had some aperitifs and appetizers in the saloon. Christiane returned home from her writing trip in the Alps, and we all sat outside and enjoyed one of our best meals in France of duck, pate, potatoes, and creme brûlée ice cream. So delicious! After dinner, we watched the Paris St. Germaine soccer game with Bernard and some more Makers Mark 47. It was a wonderful night of good food and good company.

On Monday, we had breakfast of croissants and Nutella outside and then began our day of shopping in Toulouse. We did so much walking, but Melvin found many record stores, a few finds, and I got a new blazer and jewelry at nearby stores. In the afternoon, we stopped in Bernard's recommended Indian restaurant, and the food was very good!

On Monday evening, Bernard was not feeling very well but he joined us at his nephew's bar for a few beers. We got to spend the evening with Benjamin, Michael, his cousin, and their friend Guilliuame. We enjoyed a delicious three course dinner with red wine and the best chocolate cake with strawberry sorbet dessert. After dinner, we joined the friends at Speak Easy, where the men talked about bourbons and enjoyed a little to end the evening. Bernard promised to visit us next year. I am sure we will get to Toulouse again. It was sad to say goodbye and leave Toulouse, but we were excited to get to Venice!

Last Day in Toulosue

These two weeks have flown by! I cannot believe I've been here 14 days already.... it's very sad to see our group leave France, but I'm also looking forward to Barcelona! I've learned a lot in my short time here, and I know I have made memories that will last a lifetime.

Today we had a final lunch at the Undergrad campus of ESC. It was a delicious four course meal again. The French know how to make a big meal.

Tonight we are going on a dinner boat cruise with our class. It should be a nice way to end our time in Toulouse. Then tomorrow we leave for Barcelona at 9:00 and should arrive by 2:00 pm. I'm looking forward to the new cultural experiences in Spain though!

Visit to Cahors

Today, our class visited the Chamber of Commerce in the city of Cahors, France. It was about an hour and a half away by bus, but it was a fun day full of great opportunities.

We were hosted by the President of the Chamber of Commerce in Cahors. He was a very down to earth guy, and said he acts as President as a secondary role. He primarily sells cars, which would be uncommon in American Chamber of Commerces. The city treated us very well though, taking us to a Georges Vigouroux Winery, an authentic small town French restaurant, and a small farmer's land to hunt truffles!

The winery was a really neat experience, especially comparing it to the brewery I visited in Belgium. This winery specializes in red wines, mostly Malbec wines, but they also have a few other grapes they use including some Merlot and white varieties. We had the opportunity to hear about the harvesting process of their hundreds of acres, which can be accomplished in less than a week with the help of machines, the fermentation in oak or stainless steel barrels, and their differentiated marketing strategy (of their two tiers of wine). They do not sell to grocery stores, but instead directly to customers and restaurants. Georges Vigouroux is increasing exports heavily since France's wine consumption is heavily decreasing and countries like the U.S. are drinking a lot more wine in recent years. We were able to sample two of their Malbec wines, and they were very good. I am bringing back a bottle to the States!

After the visit, we enjoyed an authentic, French country four course meal of soup, duck salad, chicken and potatoes, and an apple dessert. What a day of delicious food! Bernard told me my face is fuller than it was two weeks ago, but I have many delicious meals to account for the few extra pounds!

To conclude the day in Cahors, we went to a small farmer's land and helped him hunt truffles (the very expensive mushroom, not the chocolate like some thought), and the dog was able to find three under a few of the oak trees! The truffles sell for 1000 euros per kilo, so a few truffles make these farmers good money. Even if they are all sold on the black market!

Tonight we enjoyed our last dinner with our family. Yet another great meal of salad and mozzerella and tomato pie. We watched a few episodes of Terra Nova with Bernard. It was a nice last night in before we leave Saturday morning. I am going to miss our host family and the city of Toulouse! I couldn't have asked for a better experience here!

Tomorrow will be a fun last day in France. We have a lunch at the school and a boat cruise tomorrow evening! A fun weekend ahead, including our first taste of Barcelona on Saturday! Updates on our adventures to come soon!

Poult plant tour

Today was our last formal class in France. We concluded the French language class, and unfortunately I am just as helpless in French as I was two weeks ago.

After class ended, we had a long break before our biscuit company tour so a group of us shopped near the capitole. I found a few good bargains at h&m, but my shopping really needs to come to an end now. Then Alex, Colton, Courtney, Kara, Tyler, and I had a picnic lunch at the park. It was a fun afternoon with friends before we got serious about business!

The tour was of Poult, a manufacturer of typical French biscuits and cookies that sells to private labels. The biscuits are not typical American biscuits; they're actually plainer cookies. The private labels for French supermarkets are very popular. Many of the cookies we saw today are sold in Carrefours and Casinos.

The plant and the operations was super neat though. I have never seen a plant inside, so I enjoyed the explanations of the process from start to finish, how the machines add efficiency, and the role of humans in quality control. One of the most interesting parts of the process was the labeling and packaging. We then had a presentation on the structure of the company and how they restructured several years ago, relying heavily on the input of employees. They are organized by product lines, making certain lines in specific plants across France. Poult highly values relationships with suppliers and the creativity of employees. Ant employee with a new idea can form a group and try to implement their idea. They also give them a lot of free reign and personal responsibility. It has proven successful for their business model! And we received lots of delicious cookies as well :)

This evening we are having rabbit for dinner with our family. I can't believe we only have one more family meal, since we have a boat cruise Friday and leave Saturday! It flew by!

Tomorrow we are visiting the chamber if commerce and a winery! Should be another great day!






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Airbus Tour and the blow-up A380

Today we had our first company visit to Airbus after a classroom session on French Business Law. The lecture was a little dry. but overall I have loved the professors here and their perspective on French culture and business: Yesterday we had a class on consumer behavior in France, and it was fascinating to learn more about how their religion. political ideas. and regional differences shape their daily life!

Airbus was a really neat tour! We had a guide show us a test room and explain how Airbus tested the first A380, world's largest plane! It took 9 years from start to finish, but now the plane can be assembled in Toulouse in 8 working days! The current production of these planes is 2 a month, but if you order one today (at a price of 375 million), it will not be ready for 8 years! They still have not seen a profit on their line though, because of the extreme costs for R&D and testing. We also had the chance to see the room they assembled the planes in and sit in a model A380! Very cool experience! We sensed a lot of resentment in our French tour guide's voice though when we asked if any American airlines had purchased any A380s... the answer was no! I would love if Delta purchased a few of these double decker planes- they were amazing and very luxurious!

The A380 we toured today at our visit! So impressive!

One of the most epic parts of the experience may have been the souvenir Alex was convinced into purchasing. He joked that he would buy this huge blowup A380 model if it was less than twenty euros, well it was only 14! So we blew it up and walked around Toulouse with it after our bus dropped us off. We sure got some looks and laughs in the streets. One man even used sign language to get us to try to fly it down the street. Hilarious. This thing had to be about 4 feet long and feet wide! So a group of 10 students or so go to a park near school to hang out for a little bit before returning to our homes for dinner, and these two little girls keep looking at the plane. We can tell they really want to play with it, so Mallory takes it over to them and they go crazy. The little girl of about age 2, with the cutest curls, had a field day throwing it up to make it fly. It was twice her size too! Their mom tried to get them to return it, but we told them to keep it. and I've never seen such a happy child. It was one of the sweetest moments on the trip! We made one little French girl happy with our corny souvenir!

I am really enjoying the bonding with all the friends on the trip! This was the perfect way to spend one of my last quarters at UC! Tomorrow we have a break in between class and the cookie plant tour, so I'm looking forward to some more adventures with my new, great friends! At least I have a week in Barcelona with the group as well! Courtney and I are going to dearly miss our host family. They have treated us like their own children, doing everything possible to make our stay wonderful. Thank God for social media and the Internet, which will make staying in contact much easier!

Crepe Party

Monday in Toulouse was a blast! We only had class until 12:30 and then went shopping with some of the girls after lunch around the capitole. I found two shirts on sale at Mango, which was an exciting purchase! I'm loving these sales!

Then around 5, about 10 of our friends came over for the many crepes Bernard made for all of us! They were delicious! We put honey, apples, bananas, and nutella on them... yum! It was so nice of Bernard to host the party. The best part of the evening though came after we finished eating- we had a dance party in the living room to country songs! It was epic! We moved the couches, opened the windows, and played our favorite country songs on YouTube! One of my favorite nights in France by far!

Analysis of Shopping and Dining in France

This may be a boring post, but I wanted to post my experiences and reflection on shopping and dining in Toulouse. It is part of a paper I turned in today. Fun stories of shopping and the crepe party to follow this evening!

The Experience:

Courtney and I visited several grocery stores and retail shops throughout the week, in addition to eating out at some restaurants, shopping at retailers like Pimkie, and seeing the open markets. Price Leader, a grocery chain owned by Casino, was our first grocery experience in France. I immediately noticed the grocery stores are much smaller in France, but carry more fresh products, like their large meat and cheese sections and have smaller aisles containing processed chips or cookies. There is also a large wine area, as one might expect for France! The products closest to the entrance were the staples, like wine, produce, and cheese. In America, often times you find the meat, breads, or junk food closest to the entrance in my experiences. More people used reusable shopping bags in France; in fact, I don't believe any grocery stores I have visited even offered to give plastic or paper bags, and we bagged our own groceries.

People have smaller shopping trips, and they often return to the grocery several times a week. In our first week, I have visited the grocery with our family twice, and they have gone shopping two or three times for cheese, bread, or wine without us as well! We purchased a lot of different foods, as Bernard, our host dad, wanted us to try everything special to France. Our bill was around 65 euros. This would be equivalent to a small to normal grocery bill in USD, but the other customers and cashier looked at us like we had an extravagant trip!

I also noticed that fruits were sold more individually, like tangerines. In the States, we have large bags or crates of tangerines, but here you just take as many as you like. They also place everything in plastic produce bags, even bananas. Courtney put a group of bananas straight into the cart, and Bernard went back to the produce section later to bag them up.

In all my shopping experiences, especially department stores and clothing shops, the salesman are less friendly and do not approach you as much. They do not usually greet you at the door or ask you how your shopping is going, like in America. Often times, I was relieved to keep to myself as I do not know much English and always felt rude when I could not communicate properly.

In general, most stores and restaurants in France are much smaller than the United States'. We did visit a mall, but even the large retailer chains didn't have multi-level stores or giant showrooms, like I would see in a mall in Chicago or even Cincinnati. Restaurants sometimes only have three or four tables inside, which is almost unheard of in the States.

The ambiance of grocery stores, retail shops, and restaurants is much quieter overall. People are not as loud in France, always keeping their voices down. When our American friends join us in restaurants in France, we always bring the noise level up and sometimes the French even look over at us during our meals. We then adjusted our noise level if we noticed people looking.

Another interesting shopping experience was when I visited the hypermarket with my family. It reminded me of a Sam's Club, a giant store with food, clothes, appliances, and everything you might need for your home. It was interesting that it was not a stand alone store though- it was built into the mall. I also saw a Carrefour near ESC that was built into a shopping center in the same manner. This is a different structure than an American super or hypermarket. All the markets seem to offer parking though, which is unusual compared to other small stores in France. The mall parking lot was really organized, counting the cars coming in and out and had an automatic ticker showing the number of free parking spaces. The hypermarket, E. Leclerc, had signs in French and English, making it a more comfortable shopping experience for me but this was the only shopping experience where I saw any English. I purchased a hair straightener at E. Leclerc, and when I checked out, the salesclerk said something in French. My host dad translated and said "your guarantee is in the box". This struck me as odd, because I have never had someone in the States remind me of the guarantee on a simple appliance like a straightener.  

Reflection:

For one, I think many of these observations suggest that French people have different eating habits than Americans. They prefer quantity over quality, so they buy less food at a higher quantity. They also want fresher foods, like their cheese, wines, and meats. My mom at home often buys pre-packaged lunch meats for our family's lunches throughout the week, and I don't think that would be very common in France. They take the time to prepare their meals with fresh ingredients each day. This would also explain why they buy less at the grocery and make more frequent trips.

In America, I dread grocery shopping. It is an inconvenience, and I do not take time to pick out the best quality products. I usually get what is on sale or what I am used to buying. Our host family takes time when selecting his ingredients for a meal. He looks at where the food was grown and of the flavors present. I shop by calorie count or price tag only. I never pay attention to where my meat or produce originated.

In terms of ambiance and customer service, the French do not go out of their way to help initially, but will help when they are asked. They also do not draw a lot of attention to themselves, like being reserved or speaking at a lower volume at dinners or in public. The French may be more of an individualistic society than America. They do not feel the need to pry into other people's business, like their shopping experience, unless asked. This would also make sense why they do not want to be loud while out to eat, because they are more private and don't need the entire restaurant to hear their conversations.

The reusable shopping bags suggest the French place more value on eco-friendly lifestyles, wanting to protect the earth. There is a push for this in America as well, but our grocery stores do not force people to change their habits since they still always offer paper or plastic bags at the counter.

The smaller shopping trips could be due to the fact that they want fresher products, especially cheese which is very important to their dinners, or because they have smaller cars. A normal family grocery trip for my family would not fit in most European tiny cars. The large shopping trip we had hardly fit in our reusable shopping bag and the small trunk!

I believe the experience I had when I bought the straightener and the clerk reminded me about the guarantee being in the box may have been attributed to the French's emphasis on protection. They protect their rights, even the rights they have when they buy a product that could malfunction. As a consumer in France, you want to be sure you have rights if something goes wrong and are protected! A U.S. employee would never remind a customer of such a right.

A Fantastic French Sunday!

Last night Courtney, Colton, Tyler, and I had a fun Saturday night in Toulouse. We met at Le Capitole and found a delicious small crepe shop. The owner didn't speak much English so we all Pointed to unknown menu items, but were luckily happy with our choices. The language barrier is terrible in restaurants as we have no idea what the names or ingredients of the dishes are. It's usually a surprise to me when my dish arrives. I had a ham and cheese crepe and a chocolate one for dessert. It was great! We stayed around the capitole and found San Pierre, a district where many local students visit.

This morning it was really nice to sleep in until 10. I finished my paper for class on cultural observations, which was actually quite challenging on a French keyboard. The a, w, and punctuation marks were all in different spots...no speed typing for me in France!

For lunch, a family friend who also hosts UC students came over with her girls, Trisha and Kim. We had our largest, most delicious, and longest meal yet. We had kir and appetizers to start then duck, potatoes, and cheeses followed by a king cake! Trisha found the figure today and was queen! The conversation at lunch turned a little political, but it was really interesting to hear the view on America and our social benefits or lack thereof. I had just discussed collectivism vs individualism in a society in my paper, and enjoyed hearing how that cultural dimension influences political beliefs. I also realized I am much more moderate in my political beliefs than I would have previously thought. Both sides of the spectrum have valid points, and no one is right or wrong.Culture and politics are just different between two groups of people!

This evening I went for a long run and stopped in the Basilica in Toulouse- St. Sernin. It was a beautiful church. I didn't have a camera, but posted a picture below. That is one thing I love about Europe is the chance to see all the wonderful, beautiful churches.

St. Sernin in Toulouse

This evening we had a much needed light meal of salad and cheese and watched a film with Nicolas Cage about the Crusades. It was a lovely evening. I love spending time with our host family. Tomorrow Bernard is hosting 12 of the students for a crepe party! I am so excited! We get out of class early, so I am probably going to go shopping with a few of the girls after class before we make our delicious crepes!

I've been in Toulouse for 8 days now, which is probably longer than I've ever spent in any city at one time. I've been away from home for nearly two weeks... in some ways, it feels like I just left home and other way, it seems like I have been in Europe for ages! It helps that I have the internet and my family's phoneline to call home occassionally. I talked to my mom a few times, and that makes it seem like I am less far away (even if we have to strategically plan the timing because of the time diference). I am loving my time abroad though, and I don't want it to end! I was apprehensive before I came, but I now think I could stay here an entire semester and be very, very happy! I am learning so much about France, the world, cultural differences, business in Europe, the E.U. and more! I am also forming lasting friendships with my host family and the students! Studying abroad was one of the best decisions I have made in college. This is a chance of a lifetime! I am so grateful to have 14 more days of learning and adventures!  

Pizza Pinot and E. Leclerc

Last night turned out to be a very fun Friday the 13th, which is actually a lucky day in France! We were told to play the lotto, but I saved my euros!

Our group had a lovely dinner at Pizza Pinot, although I chose the salmon option. We had wine, dessert, salad, bread, and potato chips (as an appetizer!) as well. It's going to be culture shock when I return to the States and don't have a 3-4 course meal every time I dine out!

We then headed to Bernard's nephew's bar. It was a lot of fun. They are known for their rum shots, so we tried a few of those flavored rums. They also had Delirium beer, which is my all-time favorite bar that I visited in Brussels 2 years ago! I was excited to have the Belgian beer again!

This morning Courtney and I slept in and then went with Bernard and Christiane shopping. It was very crowded as it was the first Saturday of the sales. We went in a few Spanish clothing stores and then stopped at E. Leclerc. It is a hypermarket, somewhat similar to a Sam's Club or Walmart, carrying food and many other types of products. It was different though that it was situated inside a shopping mall. That is something you wouldn't find in America. I got a straightener, so my hair will finally look decent in some pictures!! I was so excited for that purchase! Courtney and I also loved the parking lot. It counted the cars coming and going and had a ticker with the exact number of spots open before you entered!

When we got home, we had a lovely lunch of pork with mushrooms, mashed potatoes, red wine, and a king cake! Courtney found the prize and was the king! At least she can buy the next cake ;)

We relaxed this afternoon after a short run. I am trying to work on my first paper due this Monday for one of our classes, but it's hard to be in the academic state of mind!

We are meeting some of our friends for dinner at Le Capitole tonight. Tomorrow we are having our family's friend, who also hosts 2 girls from Cincinnati, over for lunch. It's been a very nice weekend in Toulouse so far!

Hiking in Toulouse

Today was a much more relaxed day than any of our other class days. We had French and European Union classes until 12:30, and then we went hiking after class with Christiane and Bernard. It was a very fun afternoon!

We drove to the other side of Toulouse and had a picnic before the hike. It was the first lunch picnic I've ever had with red wine! The egg salad and ham and cheese sandwiches were great with the wine! The hike was about an hour and a half, and we ended up on the top of a mountain (or very large hill), overlooking all of Toulouse. It was a foggy and chilly day, but I loved the view!

Toulouse is a beautiful city. Today in class we discussed how Toulouse has more homes (compared to flats) than any other large French city, even Paris. The value of their properties are also rising quickly because of demand here. Bernard also informed us that Toulouse has the largest city limits of any city in France, even Paris again. This "Pink City" has so much to offer. I am loving the opportunity to explore the city and learn more about the French way of life. It is a probably a lot more realistic than the preview of France I had two years ago in Paris for three days!

Tonight we are going out with our class and the Association to a Pizza dinner followed by a trip to Bernard's newphew's bar. I'm really looking forward to more bonding time with our class and Bernard. Last night's happy hour was so much fun!

Tomorrow we are going shopping at the second largest department store in France! Courtney and I cannot wait for that either... I just may have to partake in the French sales a little more!

My favorite night thus far

Tonight was the most amazing night of Toulouse so far! We had a full day of classes, which weren't too bad. They focused on French (which is going terrible for me), Finance in Europe (which was basically review), and questions and answers on the E.U., which was very interesting.

After class, I returned home, went for an evening run and then got ready for our class' happy hour with the France/ U.S. Association Happy Hour. It was so much fun! Bernard came with Courtney and I, and we had a few drinks with our friends and host dad! It was a great night!

The night got even better as Bernard invited over Melissa and Mallory to our home for dinner afterwards. we shared red wine, delicious soup, endives salad, and coffee yogurt for dinner! It was the perfect meal with great conversation and country music. Courtney and I had so much fun learning about our friends' lives and enjoying good wine and food together!

Tomorrow we have a short day of class and then are hiking with our family! It should be so much fun! Tomorrow evening we are going to a pizza place with the Association and our class, followed by a trip to Bernard's nephew's bar! It is known for its rum drinks! I am so excited!

Toulouse is amazing so far! I could seriously stay here for months! The time is flying by, as I already have said, but it's so true! I feel so at home here, despite knowing absolutely no French. Our family and the great group of students is making this a terrific experience! And, we still have over two weeks together! Yay for the weekend! Lots more good stories to come!

French supermarkets

Our days of class and nightly dinners with our family are becoming a nice routine I look forward to. Today was all lecture nut it was very interesting and we breaker for a nice Lebanese sit down lunch. Tonight we had a dinner guest, Francois, who had a fascinating life and a wonderful personality that kept Courtney and I well entertained. He lived in California for 20 years, owning a ski shop and teaching ski lessons to celebrities. He was even married to a Miss Universe! Christiane, our host mother, wrote a book about how fascinating his life is! We were disappointed he is going to be out of down for the rest of our visit, as he is visiting his girlfriend in another part of France, but we invited him to Cincinnati anytime. He loves American cheesecake and jello!
Last night we went with our host dad to the grocery for the week. It was a great opportunity to learn more about the culture of France. We went to a "Price Leader", which is a local chain owned by Casino, a larger chain of groceries in France. Part of our class assignment is to analyze the shopping experiences in France, so I am going to use this blog as a way to brainstorm for my first paper!

The experience: The French grocery stores are much smaller. They carry more fresh products, such as large meat and cheese sections and smaller aisles contain processed chips or cookies. There is also a large wine area, as one might expect for France! It takes awhile to get used to the prices in euros and the weights in kilograms instead of pounds. The products closest to the entrance were the staples, like wine, produce, and cheese. In America, often times you find the meat, breads, or junk food closest to the entrance in my experiences. More people used reusable shopping bags in France; in fact, I don't believe the store even offered to give you plastic or paper bags and we bagged our own groceries. People have smaller shopping trips, and they often return to the grocery several times a week. This could be due to the fact that they want fresher products, especially cheese which is very important to their dinners, or because they have smaller cars. A normal family grocery trip for my family would not fit in most European tiny cars. We purchased a lot of different foods, as Bernard wanted us to try everything special to France, and our bill was around 65 euros. This would be equivalent to a small to normal grocery bill in USD, but the other customers and cashier looked at us like we had an extravagant trip! I also noticed that fruits were sold more individually, like tangerines. In the States, we have large bags or crates of tangerines, but here you just take as many as you like. They also place everything in plastic bags, even bananas. Courtney put a group of bananas straight into the cart, and Bernard went back to the produce section later to bag them up.

Reflection and Theory: For one, I think many of these observations suggest that French people have different eating habits than Americans. They prefer quantity over quality, so they buy less food at a higher quantity. They also want fresher foods, like their cheese, wines, and meats. My mom often buys pre-packaged lunch meats for our family's lunches throughout the week and I don't think that would be offered in France. They take the time to prepare their meals with fresh ingredients each day. This would also explain why they buy less at the grocery and make more frequent trips.

These are just some thoughts after my first grocery trip in France, and I wanted to note them before they were forgotten. I will expand on how to validate the theories and any implications later if time allows!

Tomorrow we visit  Albi, a medieval town in France about an hour away. It's a walled city, and I'm excited for our "field trip". We then are seeing J. Edgar, in theatres with our group tomorrow night. Tomorrow is a fruit and vegetable day to try to regain a sense of normalcy in my diet. Tonight we had sausage, cheese, plenty of wine, and bread followed by a Christmas log cake. I am soooo full! Our host family said all the girls leave here gaining 4-5 pounds. I've literally probably gained that in this week alone! Courtney and I feel disgusting, but at least we are having a welcoming, divine dining experience with our hosts! We can't complain too much!

Stories from our adventures to Albi and the cinema to come soon!

First day of school!

I've survived my first day of winter quarter, in France! Courtney and I ran a few miles before class, and then made the 1.5- 2 mile walk to the University's Business School. We had a nice breakfast as a group and it seems that all the student's are having great experiences with their host families so far!

We had two classes today followed by a walking tour of the city. The first class was a survival french course, and I can now say Je m'appelle Rachel and spell the letters of my first and last name in French. I probably need to brush up on a few more phrases before shopping or eating in many more locations around the city though! The second class was on cross-cultural management, and although it was a 3 hour lecture, our very cultured, Iranian  and French professor made the time fly by. It was fascinating to hear her stories about her life around the world and her perspective on American and French cultural differences and similarities.

We had kebabs from a small store for lunch, which is very popular around Toulouse and then proceeded with an interesting walking tour lead by an English woman. The tour featured a lot of history of the city and took us to some churches and parts of town that I want to further explore on my own this weekend. The national French sales start in 2 days, so Courtney and I are hoping to get some new clothes this weekend! I think my budget allows for a few nice European pieces to return to the States with!

La Garonne River, which runs through Toulouse!

Living with a host family in France has been an awesome experience so far. I feel like I am living a life here, and not just visiting or being a tourist. I have a bed to call my own, and I'm learning my way around our part of town slowly but surely. Last night we enjoyed a delicious three course meal of pumpkin soup, which was excellent, cheese and ham quiche, and several French cheeses with bread and red wine. It was an amazing meal! Bernard, our host, outdoes any American cook I know! After dinner we were able to learn more about our host family and watch the Terminator in French with them. It was a relaxing night where we all got to know each other and laugh at Arnold's acting! Bernard is a retired high school French teacher, but spent several years teaching French at the University of Nebraska in the 1960s. He has an incredible love for America, and he even had the opportunity to work closely in Robert Kennedy's campaign. I love learning more about the French way of life and his family. It's something I will always remember and value from this experience.

A warm welcome to Toulouse!

I finally got to meet my host family today! Bernard and Christiane are so welcoming! They have a charming, historic house with plenty of room for Courtney and me. Our bedrooms are on the second floor, and we even have our own restroom, microwave, and TV! Bernard prepared a delicious meal of chicken and pasta for us with some red wine. It may have been one of my favorite meals of the week! We could not have asked for a kinder, more generous family!

Last night our group finally reunited in France and had dinner together at Cafe Baggio. It was a very nice restaurant, and after we were told the university was covering the bill, we all ordered three delicious courses. I tried foie gras, a delicacy here, which is actually baked liver I was told. I was feeling adventurous and tried some on crackers with salt, and loved it! We finished the evening with many french desserts, including profiteroles, pictured below! We had so much food that we were almost to the point of getting sick. Mallory ordered a pizza and salad, not realizing she had ordered 2 very large entrees. Mike challenged her to a "Mal vs Food" competition, and she downed the pizza is less than 10 minutes on a very full stomach! It was amazing! Our group dynamics are great so far, and everyone is enjoying hearing about each other's travels before Toulouse and getting to know more about each other!

Delicious dessert on Saturday in Toulouse!

After the group dinner, we all ventured out together and found a few small bars where we enjoyed a few European beers. Kronenberg was my favorite choice of the evening. The second bar we stopped into was actually playing THE BENGALS GAME! It was unreal to be half way across the world watching my hometown football team play in the playoffs. Our group stayed for most of the game, but then got frustrated in the fourth quarter and left. Colton and Alex got some greek food on our walk home, which turned into an adventure of asking for directions and navigating city maps again... reoccuring theme of my travels so far! But we arrived home at a decent hour and enjoyed some sound sleep in our luxurious hotel. I felt like I was living in a castle after hostel living for the 3 previous nights!

This morning I ran along the canal and La Garonne river, so at least I am still getting my runs in even if I am indulging in delicious food all day long! The city has a lot of runners (and dogs) unlike Italy. There are many running paths, so I am planning on running before classes each day with Courtney! We don't have a long walk to class, so that will also be nice excercise each day.

So far, I am loving France! It was a relief to be able to unpack my bags and know that I am in good hands with my host family for two weeks! I don't think I have ever spent more than a week in any city besides Cincinnati, so I am excited to get to know Toulouse well! Classes start bright and early at 8:30 tomorrow morning, which may change how much time I have for fun adventures each day, but I'm looking forward to the international business lectures!



Goodbye Rome, Hello France!

I finished my Roman trip with a run to the Colloseum on my last morning in Italy. I was sad to leave the city, but cannot wait to return again very soon!

Our journey on the cheap airline, EasyJet, was very painless! We were expecting problems with our luggage weight or number of carry-ons, but I'm glad we had no major problems.

We arrived in our hotel in Toulouse a few hours ago, and my group from Italy explored the town a little. It is very quaint and quiet, unlike Rome. It's refreshing to see cheap supermarkets on the street corner instead of street vendors selling knock off handbags. The switch in languages is fairly difficult. I want to say "gratzie" to everyone I buy something from, but then I switch to "merci". There are also many more people who do not speak any English here, so I will have to learn some survival French fast!

Our group is meeting for dinner before we meet our host families tomorrow. The irony is that they chose an Italian restaurant... ha. As if I have not had enough pasta and pizza this week!

I'm very excited to meet my family tomorrow! Study abroad officially starts now!