Category: France

Never Underestimate the Written (or Spoken) Word

Published on by Catherine BakerLeave a comment

There comes a point when you get so caught up in the moment that you forget what you used to do. Once the euphoria of travelling and explorations dies down, there’s a part of me that felt as though it was missing. I couldn’t remember what normalcy felt like. I couldn’t remember what it was like to go to the dining hall with my friends or sit in the library until it closes on a random Tuesday night. I couldn’t remember having picnics at Washington Park or going to club basketball practice.

Despite all of the normalcy I’ve lost, there are a few things that have stayed consistent. I cherish these since there’s not much else that has stayed exactly the same since leaving America. One of these activities, and my favorite, has been reading. I have failed to change my reading habits, and I think that this has allowed for my sanity to stay more intact. Since being in Rennes, I have started and completed four books, all of which have been properly logged in StoryGraph.

I have also taken to talking to my family equally as much as I did during the school year at DU. This particular habit extends to my friends as well, especially those who I am across the ocean from. Even the mere thought of being able to talk to my friends and family is enough. There doesn’t have to be any particular conversation happening, just the comfort of working silently over FaceTime is enough for me to feel comfort and normal among the chaos of a new chapter of my life.

The ability to transfer my hobbies and habits from America to France is something that is crucial to my well-being, and sometimes it can seem impossible, but I think my phone calls and obsessive reading habits are what will keep me motivated to not give up on the year-long adventure.

Storms and Fall Colors

Published on by mayamccrumLeave a comment

When I first got to Ireland, I noticed that it does not rain as often as portrayed in media, I also noticed that is was not as cloudy as often as I expected from the stories I had heard. I did wonder how ever it that had to do with the seasons and time of year. It seems that might be the case. As we get further into fall, there have been more cloudy days where the sun does not show at all. Personally, I do not mind this, I love fall days where the air is cool, and when the sun is not incredibly hot.

I had expected there to be a lot more rain than there has been. I thought maybe it might rain every single day, but this is not the case. With that said, something I did not expect were storms. Storm Amy passed over Ireland, Scotland, England and Whales this past weekend. I have experience blizzard conditions in Colorado and Wyoming in the US, but I cannot recall a moment where a rainstorm acts as if it was a blizzard. This storm had such strong winds that there were moments where the rain fell sideways.

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Since the storm though, it has felt more like autumn. There are leaves all over the ground from the storm and they continue to fall. The trees continue to change color, a little faster now. The weather is cooler. I do not know if the storm had something to do with the trees changing color and dropping their leaves, or if it was just timing. Before the storm it seemed to me that the trees were taking a little while to change color but now, they are starting to rapidly change and drop their leaves. There are trees that are still green and others that are red, orange, and yellow. It is beautiful.

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