FAIRE ATTENTION

GUH.
So, as some of you may know, I sprained my ankle right before coming to France. Pretty annoying. Well, it was almost better.
Was.
I hurt it again today, meaning it has to start healing all over again. Also, the art studio where most of my art classes happen is a 30 minute walk away. At least a nice French lady helped me home afterward.
I'm pretty annoyed though. The only way the timing could be worse would be if it was also opening night of a dance heavy show in which I played the lead.
So, anyway, I have to be all homebody-like and careful at a time when I want more than ever to be out-and-about and (responsibly, I say, to any parents who may or may not be reading this)impulsive.
My plan: Until I am all the way better, I am going to write on my arms FAIRE ATTENTION(be careful/pay attention) on my arms first thing when I wake up every day.
So: GUH.

In other news:
The day after I arrived my host family took me out into the country to visit some close friends of theirs who just moved into a 12 century castle about a week ago.
That's right. They live in a castle. An approximately 850-900-year-old castle in the French countryside. You know, like ya do. We had lunch.
Being as it is 900-or-so, it definitely needs some work, but I'm not gonna lie, it's pretty awesome. The drive was nice too, about 45 minutes. It was a bit like moving through a 3D Cezanne painting, which is not surprising as this is where he lived and worked. I also saw Picasso's castle from the car.
Anyway, they are a couple of singers named Christophe and Cecile, and they have a little two-year-old named Basil who, like two-year-old all over the world, takes great joy in being contrary. He was extraordinarily adorable(there is something extra cute about a small child speaking French), but I don't have a picture because when I asked him if I could photograph him he said, "Non!" I made the mistake of asking when we weren't really friends yet. He was not into me at first, since he didn't already know me, which obviously meant I was bad news. It took longer with him than it usually does for me with kids, but I eventually won him over by refusing to agree with anything he said. We went back and forth for a while:
Basil: Oui!
Me: Non!
Basil: Oui:
Me: Non!
Basil: Oui!
Me: Non!
Then I pulled a Bugs Bunny on him, which is the only time in my life that has ever worked.
Basil: Non!
Me: Oui!
And then he did it to me and I went along with it and he said, "I win!"
"C'est vrai," I replied, nodding. "You won."
Then he told me I had to leave and I refused. From then on we were biffles.
Here are some pictures of the chateau(castle). The one of the fields I took from a window in the oldest part of the castle.



Christophe is always making wry jokes and Cecile is always smiling, which I love. For the most part, the French don't really smile. They are taught when they are young that you should not smile unless you specifically have a reason too. Maybe I'm just not being understanding of their culture and should have a more open mind, but I think that that is kind of lame. In the states, especially California, we smile a lot, and often at strangers. In France, you are not supposed to even make eye contact with strangers, especially not boys, as they will think you are flirting with them. It is a challenge for me, but I think I am starting to get the hang of it. I bet it will help if I look at the ground to make sure that I don't, I don't know, INJURE myself or something.
Guh.

Here is an average street in Aix.
OH MAN. So. There is this thing, this wonderful, wonderful thing called fromage blanc, which literally means "white cheese." However, it is closer in consistency and flavor to yogurt, such that that's what I thought it was at first. But no. It is to yogurt what Tesla is to Edison. That is to say, far more awesome and tasty.
I like the French custom of having a light breakfast and and early lunch. It feels healthier, and I often don't want something too heavy when I first wake up.
Three other things I recently experienced in French cuisine that I adore: Ratatouille, pain au chocolat, and roquefort. But the fact is, everything I have eaten here is delicious.

This weird thing keeps happening now, when I speak to people in English (most of the IAU students speak very little French) where I don't understand what they are saying because my brain is trying to translate the English into English. Does that make sense? My ears are listening to the English as if it is french, but as it is NOT french my brain goes, "sorry, that is not in our French vocabulary. Nous ne comprenons pas" and then I have no idea what the person just said. It is a very strange feeling.

My favorite new phrase I have learned in French was won through the most extensive game of charades I have had to play so far to make my homestay family understand what I was trying. It was Alexis who figured it out, and very proud of himself he was, too. To have pins and needles=Avoir des fourmis. Literally translated, it is "to have ants."

We had orientation yesterday, which was way too long and way too hot, and today was the first day of class. It's funny, American students keep thinking that I'm French and French people keep thinking that I am Spanish. I think that is a good sign. I have found that I am more fluent in French then I realized, and getting to speak it every day is truly a joy. I am thinking in Spanish more too, in part from having stayed with Mar and Stephan, and in part from the fact that it is closer to French than English is, so that when I am looking for a word I don't know my brain will sometimes go to Spanish first.

So: things from my first day of class: I am no longer worried about being advanced enough for French 300. Also, the Marchutz students all met and, following our fearless leader and teacher John, made the half hour walk to the art studio together, stopping to look at the art supply store and to have a picnic along the way. As I said before, the studio (or, attelier) is about a half-hour walk from the center of Aix (not including our stops) and was quite lovely, though in retrospect may have contributed to my ankle troubles. I am finding that I get along quite swimmingly with my fellow Marchutz folk, and one of them is even a theater person like me. I think I'm the only one who has studies molecular biology though. Alan, the other teacher talked us through what the class would be like, but we all paid attention to the kitten that was walking around the room instead, while John tried to subtly get it to come to him which was, of course, not possible. But the thing that I think made me the happiest was buying school supplies, as I got the MOST BADASS BINDER EVER. It has a giant Tyrannosaurus Rex on it. He is roaring/smiling. I have named him Donatien.

I went out to a bar last night to meet up with some other IAU students. They say that it is really hard to meet young French people, thet they are cold to people they don't know, but I did not find that to be the case at all! It was fun. I am making lots of friends, and we often run into eachother and stop for a bite or drink at a cafe at random. I really love that, and it's part of way the ankle thing is frustrating because it means I can't go out as much right when I want to be getting to know them. Oh well. It'll wait.

Sleep, however, will not. I think that is enough for now. To end, here is a picture of another kitten that I met, on my way home a couple nights ago, who I named Verlaine.