News news news!

It has been a few days since my last post so I have lots of updates! First, I'll explain my absence from the blog: my computer crashed! In fact, I was trying to post a lovely new update when the problems began. The connection was slow, things weren't working, etc. so I tried to reboot the computer. When I did, it couldn't restart! I brought it to a shop in Tours and, after my host dad called and talked to them, they were able to fix it right away.

So, to recap everything that has happened since my last post:

Chenonceau
The entire group went to Chateau Chenonceau last Saturday. All in all it was a great time. I had already been when I traveled with Leah and Shana in 2006, but it was equally beautiful this time. It is easily my favorite chateau both for it's history and it's architecture. Not only is it incredibly picturesque, spanning the river, but it is also surrounded by beautiful, meticulously maintained gardens. It was built by François I (who reigned at the same time as Henry VIII ruled England) for his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. When François died, his wife, Catherine de Medici, seized the castle for herself, "trading" Diane for the less valuable Chaumont (which I visited later with my host family). I don't blame them for fighting over it! It's really beautiful.

Chaumont
Sunday I visited Chaumont with my host mom and Mika, the Japanese student who also lives with us. It is famous for it's gardens and there was an exhibition going on. Some gardens were modeled after paintings or inspired by poems, others were purely artistic. It was a beautiful day and there were lots of people (and dogs) there to enjoy the weather.

On a fait l'equitation
My oldest host sister, Emilie, rides horses at a club just across the river from Tours, on the grounds of an old chateau (which, in France, is apparently a very normal place to have a riding club), so she invited me to take a lesson with her! I was very excited to participate and get to ride while I was there but a little nervous about the language barrier. Vocabulary like girth, stirrup, right lead, etc. never really came up in French class! But I had a very nice horse and ended up having a great time. Mika had never even touched a horse before and had a great time coming to watch and feeding the horses sugar cubes after we were done. It was impossible to get a clear picture of her feeding the horses because their noses tickled her hands so much she squirmed and squealed!

Cooking Class
Today I took a cooking class that was offered through my program. After classes, ten of us headed over to a professor's house to learn to make Tarte Tatin, the French version of apple pie. It was a lot of fun and the result was very tasty. Especially with the hard cider (a specialty of Normandy) that our professor provided.

In other news
After cooking class, I returned to the Institute to pick up my housing assignment for Paris! I will be living in the 9th arrondissement near the Opera, Galleries Lafayettes and Printemps! The Monsieur Fouque is an architecht and his wife works for a bank. They have three children, but I don't know their ages yet. Knowing where I'll be living makes me even more excited to go to Paris! That said, I will be sad to leave my host family here in Tours. The Chidiacs have been incredibly kind and welcoming. I can't imagine having a better experience with a host family. I can only hope that my Parisian family is half as wonderful as they are.