Snow in September

France is still beautiful! It rained really hard for a few days last week, and there is already snow in the mountains.

Snow in September

Patricia and I decided to do some actual cooking outside of bread and cheese (as good as it is). So, we made bow tie pasta and spaghetti sauce instead.

Patricia cooking dinner. I made the pasta.

Me and some pasta Patricia and I made dinner

For class, we did a scavenger hunt downtown to find various historical fountains. It was a nice break from French grammar.

Christian and Danielle on the tram ride from campus

the tram is always fun

Street in Grenoble

One of the many fountains we found
The lion represents Grenoble and the snake represents the Isere River

Obesity in France

For samia. There is couscous named after you.

Bikes, paintings, and flowers

I have been pretty busy with class and other various mini adventures in Grenoble, first of which was buying a bike from a local bike shop called 'un p'tit velo dans la tete.' I could be practical and rent a metrovelo bike from the city that is ready to ride, has lights and a basket, and only costs 10 euro a month, but that isn't what I did. Instead, I excavated a dirty but beautiful bike from the bike shop in downtown Grenoble. It is white and has a Tour de France sticker. My bike needs a little work (it doesn't have brakes or a derailer), but it was only 15 euro. There are so many beautiful bikes in Grenoble and I really miss mine from America, so I thought it would be worth it. I am super excited to be able to ride my bike.

These are just over half of the bikes at the bike shop.

This is my new bike. 15 euro. Yes.

Some other beautiful bikes in Grenoble:

I wanted a Peugeot, but I got a Tour de France

Patricia and I went to the Notre-Dame Musee after class this week. We were two of the few people in the museum, which is a big difference compared to when I was at the Louvre a couple weeks ago. There was everything from religious paintings from the Middle Ages to very modern work.

I like this one

Older paintings

A newer painting

Patricia and I thinking very deeply about art

Me trying to figure out why someone would put this violent painting in their house. Angels with no bodies

Me and a statue

I like this one also

Here are a couple views of the downtown part of the city:

Place Notre-Dame

Flower stand in the city

Sociology

Today my friend Patricia and I tried Speculoos with some baguette from the Geant. It is actually pretty good, in moderation. We concluded that it tastes like Teddy Grahams in the form of peanut butter, so definitely a desert food. Patricia is from Las Vegas, and every time someone from France or Spain finds that out, they get very excited. Apparently Las Vegas is where everyone in France wants to go in America because it is 'The American Dream!' We both think it is very funny.

Anyway, I got a cell phone this weekend so I am less cut off from the social world! It is kind of weird to have such a crappy phone (it was 30 euro including a 5 euro credit), but maybe I will rely less on it as most people in France rely less on there phones as far as I can tell. I love how people are more social here and go out on weekend evenings. It is nice to be able to go into a bar and feel like I am allowed to be there too. Drinking is less about being drunk and more about just being out with people. So far I have met a lot of very nice people from France, Spain, Italy, and various other places.

Me and my super delicious salade nicoise with anchovies

The weather in Grenoble is definitely changing to fall. Last week had some pretty warm days, but the last couple days have been rainy and cold. I am looking forward to having a real winter here.

What is Speculoos?!

So I ran long the Isere River again today, but this time I went farther to the less developed places. I saw a small corn field, a pumpkin patch, and these black and white birds that are about the same size as crows. I keep seeing them around, but I don't know what they are. It started to rain at the end of my run, which was a lot different than yesterday when it was clear and pretty hot.

I made another trip to the grocery store, and I promise I won't write a blog entry about every time I go to the store, but today I went to the store looking for peanut butter. It was next to the shelves of Nutella and Nutella off-brands, and found this product that is called Speculoos. I didn't know the French word for peanut butter and I thought Speculoos looked like peanut butter, so I bought it. The clerk who scanned my food asked if it was good, which I was a little surprised that she asked. I know peanut butter isn't that common in Europe, but I didn't think it was that bizarre. Anyway, unfortunately for me, I found out that Speculoos is not peanut butter. So far, all I can figure out is that it is some sort of caramel or butter spread for Belgian crackers. Does anyone know what it is?

Speculoos, what are you?!

Muesli and therefore an adventure

Today I went to the grocery store and had a successful trip whereby I didn't get any confused glances and I went to the right check out! At Geant, where I have been going to get food, there is a line for gold star members (or something), a line for if you are just paying with a check or credit card, and all the other lines. The first time I went to Geant, I accidentally got in the line for the special store members. The second time, I tried to pay with cash in the line where you can only pay with a card or check. BUT today, I got the right stickers for my produce and went in the right check out line. Score. Anyway, I thought I would show everyone the great bread, cheese, and wine selection in France.

Bread isle

One of the cheese isles

One of the wine isles

I discovered Muesli with chocolate at the grocery store. Actually, a lot of cereals here have chocolate in them, which I definitely don't have a problem with. At first I thought Muesli was an undiscovered wonder of the world (to me at least), and then I proceeded to eat something like half the box and then realized it isn't quite the greatest thing ever.

Herold and Muesli Chocolat Noir

But alas, overeating the chocolate Muesli prompted to me to go for a run that turned into an adventure in itself. I saw lots of runners and bikers, people rowing, and then I saw a brown squirrel! This is also what I found:

Houses in Grenoble

The Isere River that had trails on both sides

I think I like France

I thought I would include a sort of evolution of art that I have seen since I got to France, including the last piece that I saw on my run today.

Monet

Painting at the Pompidou (I've posted this one before)

Graffiti under the bridge that I saw today

just artists of different eras

Finally in Grenoble!

I made it to Grenoble last Thursday and I finally have internet! I wasn't able to access internet until I got my student card about an hour ago. A lot has happened since I left Paris and made the transition from a tourist back into a student.

First of all, the region Grenoble is in is very beautiful! The TGV train ride from Paris was about three hours and I was able to see a little bit of the French countryside with all of its white cows and bright green fields. The country was pretty flat until the train started to reach Lyon which is about an hour north of Grenoble.

France

French countryside just before getting to Grenoble

Getting to Grenoble was a little stressful at first, especially since resorting to English is less of an option when fewer people speak it here. I didn't come to France to practice English though!

So far people have been very nice and will try to help me understand what they are saying. It has been very difficult to try to understand French because most people speak it very fast, but i can tell I have already started to improve my understanding of the language. I am still very glad to be in Grenoble even though the school doesn't have Frisbee. I might try to buy a bike to use for the year because lots of people have them and I really miss mine. There are a TON of students here, but a French waiter I talked to said he thought it was a city for old people. I am happy to be here though!

View of the Basille in Grenoble

Graffiti on an old door...there is lots of graffiti here when all of the doors close

Store selling absinthe!

Historic square in downtown Grenoble
Can you see the dolphin? They used to be sacred to the people of the area a few hundred years ago so they are on lots of old fountains and other places throughout the city

I don't always know what I am ordering at restaurants and the first night in Grenoble I ordered thin strips of raw salmon with some vegetables. As far as I can tell, the quality of food seems to be better in France opposed to the U.S. For example, I bought a few cheap pots of yogurt and they are super good, not to mention the cheap wine, cheese, and bread I bought. Oh, there is one lesson I learned the hard way this week: almost everything is closed on Sunday's including grocery stores.

The Alps are beautiful!

Sculpture

Typical French scene with a busy cafe.
People are a lot more social here and less concerned with their cell phones and computers.
There aren't really any coffee shops where people are on their computers or talking because cafes sell coffee, drinks, and usually food

I checking into my room and I found out that I am actually living on campus, which is contrary to what I initially thought. My room has its own bathroom and there is a very limited cooking area on my floor. The toilette seat unfortunately doesn't have a seat, so I will probably go buy one sometime soon. My Aunt Debbie and I went to IKEA and got a bunch of stuff like pots, pans, bedding and such. I had never been to IKEA before but I discovered its wonders.

First glimpse of my room minus the bathroom (before)

After going to IKEA and unpacking (after)

PREVIA IN FRANCE at the train station