And another 2 weeks of vacation!

Well I don't have a lot of time to update because I'm getting ready to take the train to go see my friend Hannah in Nice, so I'll make this brief.

A lot has been going on here though!
Since I last wrote...

• I went to a fashion show in a night club with my host mom and sister
• I went to see a dance battle with some girls in my class. This was really cool because there were some French rappers, DJs, and dancers of all ages. I enjoyed going out with the girls in my class and the show was fun to watch as well!
• I went back to Dijon with some of my AFS friends here in Chalon. 
• I went to Paris to watch my host brother's handball team play at Bercy, which is the biggest sports stadium in France and a huge deal. They won and it was super exciting! 
• We went to the town hall here to see the mayor and celebrate the team's win in Paris. 
• Today I went with my host mom and sister for my host mom to vote for the 2 president canidates. Then in 2 weeks we'll go back to vote for the president. 

Well I've definitely been keeping myself busy and those are only the highlights of what has been going on here! I've got a train to catch though so I'll write when I get back from Nice!

Allez Chalon!

Right after winning! After this they all got medals, a trophy for the team and there were little fireworks for celebration!

My amazing host family! <3

Not a very good picture, but this was the dance battle!

Another AFS student from Argentina, Luciana, who went to Dijon with me

Luciana (Argentine) and Enzo (Brazilian) touching the owl! 

Dijon mustard!

Bonne Vacances! 

Joyeux Pacques! (Happy Easter)

Not only is today Easter, but it also marks the end of my first week with my new host family!

I must say it has been my best week in France so far! I have really been enjoying myself here, both with my family and at school!

At school I am in what is called ES, which is the economy section of my grade. Therefore I have History, Math, Economy, Spanish, English, French, PE, and a class similar to criminal justice. It was only the first week but I'm finding that I am able to participate in these classes a lot more than I could at my last school. There is another exchange student in my class from Australia with another program. So on Friday our economics teacher asked us to do a small talk on the things that shocked us when we came to France or just the big differences.
The things that shocked me in France when I got here were:
1. The amount of smokers. Almost everybody here smokes. It was really shocking for me when I saw kids outside the school all smoking together while their teacher walks by and also seeing kids roll their cigarettes in class under the desk. I was shocked to see this much smoking and how everybody is so open about it!
2. PDA (Public Display of Affection) is everywhere! Here I have seen so many couples making out in public, sometimes even in the halls at school. The French are definitely a lot more showy about their relationships than people are in America. If people here are in relationships, they'll show it!
3. Everything closes down on Sunday. Sure in America stores have shorter hours on Sundays but in France everything literally shuts down. It is truly a day of rest and a day to be with the family or friends. At first I didn't like this, but now I find it to nice to have a day with nothing to do where you can just spend time together and relax.
4.Everyday you have school for a different amount of time. Usually I start at 8 but I finish at different times everyday. Wednesday is a half day so I finish around 11 but Mondays are long so I finish at 6
5. Substitute teachers are very rare in France. If the teacher isn't there you simply don't have class. I really like this, but for the French students it's not a good thing because they have to take the BAC(the test at the end of the year) and if the teachers not there they won't learn the material.
6. Lunch is much bigger in France. Here it is a full on meal usually with bread (like always, lots of bread in France!), an entree, main dish, yogurt or cheese, and dessert.

The first one is what really surprised the other students in my class. They were shocked to learn that smoking isn't as popular in the states and if students under 18 were to smoke in public, there is a good chance they could get in trouble with the law. It's really a huge part of their culture here!

Anyway, I have definitely been enjoying myself at school, but also with my family! Brief, this week: Monday I went to my host sister's handball practice, Wednesday I went shopping with my host sister in our town, Thursday I walked around with my host mom after school and she showed me some more of the town, and then Friday we went to a French basketball game! Then Saturday we went to Dijon and did some shopping! It was my first time to really see a big city in France and I had a lot of fun. One thing I really love about France is all of the old architecture. It's so beautiful and has a lot of history. Then Saturday night we went to my host dad's parents house for dinner and Sunday to my host mom's parents' house for Easter lunch. I enjoyed meeting the extended family of my host family and they were all so nice and welcoming. Our Easter meals were also delicious, but huge! There was about 6 or 7 parts to the meals. They really know how to eat here in France!

Well that is my week briefly! I already feel so at home here and like this is my real family! I can't begin to say how thankful I am for this family!

My new town

French basketball game

Cheerleaders or as the French call them, Pom Pom Girls

Dijon architecture

Lucky owl in Dijon

Dijon again

... and again

... and again

Easter egg hunting, there's my host sister and her two cousins

After the Easter Egg hunt with their Kinder eggs!

New Family, New School, and a New Town- Couldn't be Happier!

Wow it's been a long time since I last wrote and to say a lot has happened would be an understatement! Since the last time I wrote I attended an AFS weekend, celebrated my birthday, and changed host families, schools, and towns! So much has happened but I will try to briefly describe it!

To start was the AFS weekend in my region! There I met other AFS students and was reunited with some that I had met in Paris. While there we did a lot of talking about our time in France and how everything was going. We also did played some games, had a talent show, and did a lot of chatting! We only got a few hours of sleep but it was so fun and I loved seeing everybody. While there I also met Justine who is now my host sister, but I'll explain that later!

Roommates in Paris-Lucianna (Argentina), me, and Flavia (Brazil)

Then the Friday after was my birthday. I did a little celebrating but I must admit it wasn't a very good birthday unfortunately. At school I celebrated with my friends during an open period. Some of the kids made me cupcakes, brought a ton of candy, and gave me presents! They also brought some candles so I was able to blow out my candle, after they all sang happy birthday to me! Then that night I went to dinner with my host family. It was hard spending my birthday away from home and it didn't really feel like my birthday. However I really appreciate what all my friend at school did for me to celebrate my birthday in France!

My birthday celebration at school!

Then last Monday my liaison and another woman from AFS came to my host family so we could all talk because things weren't going to well there. After 3 hours of talking, it was decided I would switch host families. I loved my first host family and they were very nice, but we simply weren't compatible therefor I wasn't happy there. And for that reason I packed up my life in Macon and left everything that had become familiar behind to head to a new town with a new family. I finished up the week and said goodbye to all my friends there, which was pretty hard. However it's not far so I should be able to see them again! Then Sunday I took a train to my new host family! I had already met the daughter, Justine, and her father at the AFS weekend so I wasn't nervous at all, just really excited!

Now here I am with new routines in a new town with a new host family and I couldn't be happier. It was a bit sad to leave everything in Macon but now I realize it was the best decision I have ever made! My family here is incredible and a perfect fit for me! There is a 15 year old girl and a 17 year old boy named Justine and Romain. I get along with everybody in the family really well and they have all been extremely welcoming! I already feel at home here. The whole family plays handball and I'm having a lot of fun learning about it. My host family is really interesting and fun to be around. I'm so thankful and couldn't be happier here!

Then there's my new school which is amazing as well. It's a really great school and all the kids in my class are really nice as well. They are all welcoming and a ton of help for getting around. I was really nervous to start over at school but I'm finding it a lot easier this time. I've already made friends here and love my class! It's also nice because my school is pretty close to my house so it's easy to get around.

My new town is also really beautiful! It's a good size and there is a lot to do here. Also it's known has the birthplace of photography because one of the men who invented photography was born here. Today I did some shopping with my host sister here and we had a lot of fun.

I can't believe I only have a little over 3 months here and I know it is going to fly by so I'm trying to appreciate every moment I have here! I really couldn't be happier right now.