I found a new way to take out the trash . . .

Well this week or month (maybe even longer) the trash people are on strike. So that means trash is piling up at the trash pick up areas, really everywhere. Our trash pick up spot has grown to where it sits just to the left of our front window. The other night we needed to take down another bag of trash, when I decided it would be way more fun to chunk it out our front window, over our balcony, pass 3 cars and onto the trash pile. So I climbed over our railing, took 3 big swings and let it go. It was the most beautiful sight. The trash bag soared high into the sky and landed exactly on top of the pile. My roommate and I were ecstatic. Here are the pics. . .

What do you use your elevator for?

The question of the week . . .

What do you use your elevator for?

We use it to take out our trash. This week our trash was an exceptionally large amount. We (my roommate and I) couldn't get it down the stairs (it was way too heavy) so we loaded the elevator. Don't worry we sprayed this nice, smelly stuff in after we were finished.

Some good eatin'

Our Tunisian friend made us the best meal ever. I gained at least 5 pounds during this one dinner.

And still there is more . . .

This is where children were sacrificed to the god Baal and the goddess Tanit.













Do you know what these symbols mean?

More of Tunisia

This is a picture of a baptisty (part of a church) that was here before the romans and muslims moved in. We also visited historical places. This is a picture where the romans killed christians for their faith. Two females (one a mother of a newborn) were killed here.


I had the opportunity to study some history while there. Before the Arabs moved into North Africa the peoples were christian. Here is a picture of a woman who is from one of the origional people groups called "berbers".

Blue is everywhere . . .

I took this really cool trip to Tunisia and loved it. We traveled up and down the country meeting people, eating, buying, and having a blast. Here are some pictures.

The Biggest Myth in the Language Learning Process . . .

is that you will learn the language just by being in that country. This is so wrong!!! I will say the best way to learn a language is by living in that particular country, but by no means does that mean it will just come. No my friend, please do not fall into the trap of believing that. It takes work, a lot of work!!!I could live in this country with minimal language skills and never speak the language fluently. So, here is my advice . . . if you are going to be living overseas, learning a new language, be prepared to STUDY and be humbled beyond what you ever thought possible.

No, Chick-fil-a did not go international

Yep, you are looking at two girls who just experienced heaven on earth. You see my supervisors had taken some vacation time in the states and a manager of a chick-fil-a was kind enough to teach them how to prepare sandwiches that would be good for 48 hours. My supervisors love me and my roommates! They brought us back each a sandwich, and I can not begin to tell you how great today has been. I have never tasted anything so good in my entire life. So those of you who are coming for a visit be prepared to bring us chick-fil-a!!! We give thanks because manna was graciously given to us. Here are some pictures. Jen tried to bite mine--not a chance girl!

I made a funny . . . in French

Okay, so I know the language blogs are getting old, but hopefully there won't be many more. Trust me, I'm tired of just learning the language, but I know that it is necessary. So back to my funny . . . last night we had a book study at my apartment with some French people. We had taken their coats and put them in the back bedroom. Well a good friend of ours asked my roommate and I, if he could get his jacket. We both walked him back to the back room, and while Jen looked for his coat, I was standing at the door with him talking. Well when Jen brought the coat to the door, I stuck out my hand and said "Tu doit payer pour ta veste", which means "you must pay for your coat". He was so shocked that I had said it in French, but the best part was that him and Jen busted out laughing, because it was so funny. I'm sure you had to have been there, but trust me, it was funny!!! I've been waiting a long time to be able to make people laugh in French, finally success.

I love my job!!!

So the past couple of days have been amazing. Nothing really great has happened, but I have come to feel that I am at home. . . i mean, yes things are still stressful at times, and the language drives me nuts, but I love being here. Not that I don't miss the comforts of the U.S. but I will make it for my term here. I've actually found a couple of things that I will miss. Yesterday it was a whopping 49 degrees and I was able to lay out in the sun and study. I know many of you southerns are like, "49 degrees!!!" I know before coming here I would have never stepped foot outside in that kind of weather, much less in shorts and t-shirt. But it was great to feel the warmth of the sun. And my study time just flew by!! I can't wait until my language is fluent enough to share with someone.

Can you guess what is in the picture?? These are my train tickets to Nimes, France. I had to come up with a language project for this month and decided to buy tickets to a french city. And yes I had to pay for them, but it was only 12 euros. Transportation is so cheap here. All of this had to be done in french. It was the greatest conversation ever. It went so well that at one point I stopped and thought "Is she speaking to me in French or English, because I understand every word?" It has encouraged me to continue to study and learn more. The volunteers will be relieved to know that even though I am not fluent, I can buy their tickets home for them, if need be:) Rest assured you will be taken care of!!!

Problems in the kitchen . . . again

This past weekend my roommates went out of town. I was left to enjoy the weekend as an introvert. It is what happens to an extrovert when everyone leaves. On Sunday I realized that I hadn't cleaned at all so I got busy and cleaned the entire apartment. After cleaning, I got hungry so I went into the kitchen to make dinner. I decided to make Terriyaki Chicken and rice. I had just taken the very very hot glass container out of the oven and not thinking set it down on the stainless steel counter (our sink is stainless steel). Well you guessed it; it was the last time I ever used that container again. Glass shot off in every direction. You couldn't even tell that it used to be a container. I've included a picture. Those that know me should begin to pray for the safety of my future husband. . . with me in the kitchen, he better have really good insurance. :)

Sweet tea . . . The avec du sucre (translated tea w/ sugar)

Okay so today in class my professeur asked each of us about a particular meal that is from our country. I want you to take a minute and think about the states and what meal is american. . . hot dog, hamburger . . . yeah so everyone else in the room had these wonderful sounding meals with detailed ingredients and when he got to me, I was like un hamburger. They are familiar with them. But I gave it a little more thought and came up with Bar-be-que. This took some explaining. They are a little familiar with it, but they definitely have never heard of Sonny's. So I told them that bar-be-que is big in the south and he asked what we have with it, so I went down the Sonny's menu. Then he asked what we would have to drink with it. And I responded "Du the avec du sucre" (translated tea with sugar). They have never heard of this before. One Russian proceeded to tell me that we dont' drink sweet tea with bar-be-que but that we have beer. He said he saw a celebrity in his mansion (on crib) eating bar-be-que and he had a beer. Then the teacher kindly interrupted and said "remember she has told us not to believe everything we see on t.v." They believe that everything they see on T.V. is reality. I try to convince them that it isn't. Anyway, I told them "I'm sure some people drink beer with it, but my family doesn't". They know about hot tea but I wasn't sure they knew about cold tea. And when I said that the tea is cold and we add sugar to it they freaked out and said "you will get sick if you drink that." I assured them that you wouldn't and attempted to explain the process in making sweet tea. I talked about making sun tea and reassured them that the sugar is added after the process (one Russian was worried that sugar in the sun makes alcohol). It was very humorous to see their reaction to the whole tea issue. You may rest now in knowning that my class is more educated on sweet tea!!!

I need fire insurance!!!

So, I've come to the conclusion that when I move back to the states I desperately need fire insurance. I have had a few issues with our stove (we have a gas stove). It is great in that the stove cooks really fast, but if you aren't used to it, it can back fire. Like today for example, I came home and began preparing my lunch. I put on a pot of broccoli and went to check my e-mail. I checked on it often and just when I decided it was done, I began to notice that it smelled like someone had burnt something. Well there have been many times when we can smell things coming from other kitchens in the apartment building. It is this fun game we play called "Can you guess what they are having for diner?" If you ever come, we'll be sure and play it:) So the smell didn't really concern me. But I decided to lift the steamer out of the pot and I discovered that the burning smell was coming from my kitchen. The pot (that used to be white on the bottom) was now black and I mean black. Just then the smell escaped into the living room. I walked out and announced that I had decided to buy a new pot. My roommates looked at me oddly and asked what the smell was. I replied "it is the reason I'm buying a new pot." miraculously the pot came clean.

A reality check

So today was a very traumatic day for me. I was leaving school and as I crossed the side street I saw a lady who was lying in the road. She had been hit by a car and the paramedic had just arrived. I can't even begin to describe how sad and gut wrenching it was. I cross that street everyday (it does not have a walk signal) and there are many days I don't even think to look to see if cars are coming. The streets are different here. Some are really small and would make you think that they are alleys that aren't used when in fact they are very busy roads. And because buildings are built right up to the street they block the few of traffic. Anyway it was definitely a reality check. Ask for safety on behalf of those working overseas.

Big Ben, Westminister Abby, Double Decker Bus

My Trip To Londres (french spelling)

this is Buckingham Palace
Hey All,
Here are some pics from my London trip. It was great and everything was in English, but I greeted everyone in French. It is a habit, what can I say? So there is a funny store related to this trip. I was exhausted from my travels and viewing London that day so I decided to go to bed rather early. It was around 9 or 10 and I had just drifted off to sleep when I heard the fire alarm go off. I jump out of bed, throw on my shoes, an extra layer of clothes (it is FREEZING outside) and I grabbed my purse. I flew downstairs (you should never take the elevator during a fire) noticing that the alarm had stopped, but thinking maybe they do things different in G.B. I arrive downstairs, run into the lobby (the lobby is like a big living room) where there is about 30 British people laughing, eating, and carrying on in front of the fire. They all stop and stare at the Amer. who had just come down stairs in her pjs. I quietly back out of the room and head back upstairs. Wanna know what the alarm was? It was the call button to the elevator. I am not joking. It sounds like an Amer. fire alarm and the kids down the hall had been playing with it.

French People Throw Up Too!!

You will never guess what I saw the other day. So I was headed to the airport to catch a flight to London for a couple of days, when I saw the grossest thing ever. I had to take the metro on my way to the airport and I was sitting across from this girl who looked like she was doing alright. Well, my stop was the next one and since I was so anxious about being on time, I decided to get up a few seconds before we got there. And it is a good thing I did. As I was facing the doors to exit (this guy was standing to my left) I heard an odd sound coming from behind me. I looked at the girl who I was sitting across from and thought she was using an inhaler. I've never seen a French person use an inhaler before and so I thought I'd watch. She makes the sound again and I realize she is gagging, while holding her hand over her mouth. I start to panic. I don't do well with vomit!!! At ALL!! And by the look of the gag she doesn't look to be having much success. I start beating on the door (and guy next to me) saying in a very quiet but panicked voice, "Let me out, Let me out" (the metro is still moving mind you; and at this point I really don't care). I glance back to check on the girl (again, I don't know why, when I know how I react to throw up, but I do) and just as I do, she spews lime green vomit in the very seat I was sitting in!!! The color of her vomit would make you change your favorite color if it happened to be lime green. I begin to beat harder on the door as the metro slowly comes to a stop. I run out of the metro, gagging, praying that I would keep everything down. What a way to start off my trip!! I just hope they find it soon and clean it up. I have no clue how often they go through the metro, but by the looks of it, not very often. So we've decided that they need to have throw up bags on the metro.

Today was a beautiful day. I went to a soap shop (Marseille is known for its soaps) and bought some soap. Then I headed to the post office to mail it. And the greatest part of all of this, is that I spoke in French to the nice postal worker. She understood me and I understood her. It makes me want to send a ton of packages. However, there is a funny part to today's adventure. Here the postal workers fill out the customs form for you. She asked me what was in the package and I responded savon (soap). Well because it is going to the U.S. she had to write that in English as well and so she asked me how to spell it. For the life of me I couldn't spell soap. It was so frustrating, so now there is a package being shipped priority mail to the U.S. that reads "soep". So hopefully it will get there. The flowers above were purchased in an open air market by my roommate. Aren't the beautiful? And the best part is that they cost 5 euros for 10 tulips. You can't get a better deal. The other picture is of an open air market in Aix-en Provence. I love flowers!!!

Now for those of you who know me, know that I hate shopping with a passion. I've discovered that the reason is because I can never find clothes that fit. Well, it took me moving all the way across the big blue to find my size. I went crazy and tried on everything. Now I will say this, my taste and the fr. taste differ a bit, but I did manage to find clothes. Once I got home I had a fashion show for my roomie. I've posted some of the pictures. I got a ton of shirts, a sweater (that is green) and an awesome dress!!!