1. There are no fat people in Europe. Everyone is skinny skinny. I felt like the fat one!! :)
2. People ride bikes and mo-peds EVERYWHERE in Europe. It's awesome!
3. The smallest car in the US is the biggest car in Europe. (take that statement with a grain of salt... I was mostly in heavily populated cities where they have mini-cars everywhere!)
4. There are SO many stairs in France. It was a great butt workout!
5. The people are so much friendlier in Europe - ie airline personnel, shop owners, etc. I literally witnessed a lady being cursed out by the airline lady behind the counter because she didn't understand what she was saying. I don't get why some people have to be so rude!
6. The olive oil in Italy is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!)
7. EVERYONE in Europe smokes EVERYWHERE. It's insane!
8. Students in the US don't learn multiple languages. I felt like everyone I encountered in Italy and France spoke English. :)
9. International book covers are much more exciting than ones in the US. I read Chasing Harry Winston and got the cover with the green stiletto on it. Fabulous!
10. There -is- something about the Tuscan Sun. It's absolutely amazing!
:)
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Italy and France :)
It's way too complicated to go back and write every single detail about my trip - so here goes... the jist!
- The first day I was in Rome, Italy... we rented vespas! (well, little honda mo-ped's) It was SO much fun. Since we rented them overnight, we went to the beach the next day. There were 6 of us who got them, so it was totally fun! One of the guys wrecked his 20 seconds after he got on it... hilarious!
- While in Rome, I saw pretty much everything I wanted to see. The spanish steps, Colloseum, The Vatican, St. Peter's Basillica (Actually went to the excavations at st. peter's basillica and that was SUPER cool), etc. It was much more fun just riding around on the mo-ped's instead! We went to the Piazza Navonna, hung out by the river, ate chinese food (haha!), ate a TON of italian food, ate gelato, etc etc. We also saw the Opera, Pagliacci, and that was really cool, too!
- On the way from Rome to Florence, we stopped at a winery and had a wine tasting. This was really awesome - to actually see the wine fields and everything. This was one of our company visits for the program, so we were there for _hours_.
- When in Florence, we went to the original Buca di Beppo (or where it was originated from) to eat the first night. A boyfriend of one of the girls on our trip surprised her with a ring in her room when we got there. It was really sweet and he stayed with us for the rest of the trip.
- The BEST gelato in the entire city (or perhaps even what I had in Italy) was at La Carialla (not sure about the spelling). It was AMAZING! I had mint chocolate chip :)
- We toured Santa Maria Novella, another perfumerie, and a few other companies. On Sunday, we had a free day and I was pretty much over being around everyone for 7 days straight, so I went shopping! I got this pair of jeans that is oh-so-awesome. A shirt, some italian leather sandals (at the market), and a whole bunch of souvenirs for everyone at the street markets. It's really awesome there! They wouldn't let you rent a mo-ped without a motorcycle license... so that was out of the question! Oh, and we ate Mexican food in Florence!!
- Between Florence and Milan, we went to Pisa (to see the leaning tower!) and also to a winery or two in Montolcino (spelling?). There was a castle there... pretty cool. We also went to the oldest castle in Tuscany... over 900 years old! the Pacci family lived there waaaay back then, and they killed a very famous family - it was quite interesting.
- Before we got to Milan, we went to tour the Ducati factory. THAT was cool! We also went to Turin and toured the Fiat factory (the Chrysler/Fiat merger is going to be a fucking disaster, by the way. We had a session with their marketing manager - and I'm seriously worried about the billions of dollars we're paying in to this. Oy.)
- In Milan, we saw the sfortzesco castle (damn, I wish I had all of my papers with me, cause then I would spell this all correctly!), the Il Duomo in the center of town, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff. We went to an italian bag maker called "i santi" and that was super cool. How could I forget that we also toured Lamborghini :)
- Rome, by far, was my favorite city. My fave stores over in Italy were OVS (Oviesse), Promod, and Sisiley. Fab!
Then - I left the group a day early and met my mom in Paris. We had a TON of fun and saw a lot of incredible things.
- I went STRAIGHT to the eiffel tower after getting there. :) Oh, my love!
- We went on a boat cruise down the seine, ate lots of yummy food, saw a piano being lifted through an apartment window, saw the Louvre, the Arch de Triumph (and climbed all 275 stairs), rode the metro everywhere, took a bike tour, went to a wax museum, saw the Mona Lisa, Gardens at the Tuilleries, The Notre Dame, and MUCH MUCH more. All in 4 days...
- I woke up with a small ear infection on Saturday and was MISERABLE. I'm sure I was the biggest biatch to my mom while I was there - I was irritated about everything and I feel INCREDIBLY bad about it. Going to the French pharmacy was crazy. I didn't know what anything was and they don't know what Benadryl is... so we were kinda stuck. They wanted to give me something for "circulation" hahahaha... it ended up being congestion in my ears and by the end of Sunday, I was feeling better.
- We went to the top of the Eiffel Tower on Monday after our bike ride. We took a few pictures and also saw it do its little light show the night before. We ate crepes, had croque monsieur's (I'm sure I'm totally botching the spelling, but whatever!), and all kinda of fun stuff :)
- Coming home was crazy. I was over there 2 days shy of 3 weeks and was semi-ready for it. We left at 2:30 am, Paris time and I got home 10:30 pm EST... that means I traveled for 26 hours. F'in crazy!!
- As we were eating breakfast at the airport, there were news cameras everywhere outside. We just thought that was typical. I got on my flight to Rome (had to come back through the US via Rome because that's where I originally booked my ticket) and landed there - had to RUN across the airport and barely made the flight. As I was sitting there, waiting for take-off, I decided to check cnn.com and look at the news. I hadn't in 3 weeks. The top headline... "Air France flight missing over the Atlantic". HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Ummm... it was WAY too late for me to get off the flight, the door had already been closed. I was stuck. And petrified.
- I arrived at JFK and had to wait for 5 hours for my next flight. This is where my realizations about the differences between Europe and the US set in. If I write one day that I'm moving to Europe, please don't be surprised by this!
Anyway, all in all, it was an awesome trip. Going with 14 college kids when you're post-college age and maturity level isn't something I would recommend, but it was fun nonetheless! Perhaps I'll write a post about all of the "unprofessional" things that happened... haha!
Well, there's your update! :)
- The first day I was in Rome, Italy... we rented vespas! (well, little honda mo-ped's) It was SO much fun. Since we rented them overnight, we went to the beach the next day. There were 6 of us who got them, so it was totally fun! One of the guys wrecked his 20 seconds after he got on it... hilarious!
- While in Rome, I saw pretty much everything I wanted to see. The spanish steps, Colloseum, The Vatican, St. Peter's Basillica (Actually went to the excavations at st. peter's basillica and that was SUPER cool), etc. It was much more fun just riding around on the mo-ped's instead! We went to the Piazza Navonna, hung out by the river, ate chinese food (haha!), ate a TON of italian food, ate gelato, etc etc. We also saw the Opera, Pagliacci, and that was really cool, too!
- On the way from Rome to Florence, we stopped at a winery and had a wine tasting. This was really awesome - to actually see the wine fields and everything. This was one of our company visits for the program, so we were there for _hours_.
- When in Florence, we went to the original Buca di Beppo (or where it was originated from) to eat the first night. A boyfriend of one of the girls on our trip surprised her with a ring in her room when we got there. It was really sweet and he stayed with us for the rest of the trip.
- The BEST gelato in the entire city (or perhaps even what I had in Italy) was at La Carialla (not sure about the spelling). It was AMAZING! I had mint chocolate chip :)
- We toured Santa Maria Novella, another perfumerie, and a few other companies. On Sunday, we had a free day and I was pretty much over being around everyone for 7 days straight, so I went shopping! I got this pair of jeans that is oh-so-awesome. A shirt, some italian leather sandals (at the market), and a whole bunch of souvenirs for everyone at the street markets. It's really awesome there! They wouldn't let you rent a mo-ped without a motorcycle license... so that was out of the question! Oh, and we ate Mexican food in Florence!!
- Between Florence and Milan, we went to Pisa (to see the leaning tower!) and also to a winery or two in Montolcino (spelling?). There was a castle there... pretty cool. We also went to the oldest castle in Tuscany... over 900 years old! the Pacci family lived there waaaay back then, and they killed a very famous family - it was quite interesting.
- Before we got to Milan, we went to tour the Ducati factory. THAT was cool! We also went to Turin and toured the Fiat factory (the Chrysler/Fiat merger is going to be a fucking disaster, by the way. We had a session with their marketing manager - and I'm seriously worried about the billions of dollars we're paying in to this. Oy.)
- In Milan, we saw the sfortzesco castle (damn, I wish I had all of my papers with me, cause then I would spell this all correctly!), the Il Duomo in the center of town, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff. We went to an italian bag maker called "i santi" and that was super cool. How could I forget that we also toured Lamborghini :)
- Rome, by far, was my favorite city. My fave stores over in Italy were OVS (Oviesse), Promod, and Sisiley. Fab!
Then - I left the group a day early and met my mom in Paris. We had a TON of fun and saw a lot of incredible things.
- I went STRAIGHT to the eiffel tower after getting there. :) Oh, my love!
- We went on a boat cruise down the seine, ate lots of yummy food, saw a piano being lifted through an apartment window, saw the Louvre, the Arch de Triumph (and climbed all 275 stairs), rode the metro everywhere, took a bike tour, went to a wax museum, saw the Mona Lisa, Gardens at the Tuilleries, The Notre Dame, and MUCH MUCH more. All in 4 days...
- I woke up with a small ear infection on Saturday and was MISERABLE. I'm sure I was the biggest biatch to my mom while I was there - I was irritated about everything and I feel INCREDIBLY bad about it. Going to the French pharmacy was crazy. I didn't know what anything was and they don't know what Benadryl is... so we were kinda stuck. They wanted to give me something for "circulation" hahahaha... it ended up being congestion in my ears and by the end of Sunday, I was feeling better.
- We went to the top of the Eiffel Tower on Monday after our bike ride. We took a few pictures and also saw it do its little light show the night before. We ate crepes, had croque monsieur's (I'm sure I'm totally botching the spelling, but whatever!), and all kinda of fun stuff :)
- Coming home was crazy. I was over there 2 days shy of 3 weeks and was semi-ready for it. We left at 2:30 am, Paris time and I got home 10:30 pm EST... that means I traveled for 26 hours. F'in crazy!!
- As we were eating breakfast at the airport, there were news cameras everywhere outside. We just thought that was typical. I got on my flight to Rome (had to come back through the US via Rome because that's where I originally booked my ticket) and landed there - had to RUN across the airport and barely made the flight. As I was sitting there, waiting for take-off, I decided to check cnn.com and look at the news. I hadn't in 3 weeks. The top headline... "Air France flight missing over the Atlantic". HOLY FUCKING SHIT. Ummm... it was WAY too late for me to get off the flight, the door had already been closed. I was stuck. And petrified.
- I arrived at JFK and had to wait for 5 hours for my next flight. This is where my realizations about the differences between Europe and the US set in. If I write one day that I'm moving to Europe, please don't be surprised by this!
Anyway, all in all, it was an awesome trip. Going with 14 college kids when you're post-college age and maturity level isn't something I would recommend, but it was fun nonetheless! Perhaps I'll write a post about all of the "unprofessional" things that happened... haha!
Well, there's your update! :)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
10 Things... just an update
I'm going to need to learn how to update this thing from my Blackberry... then, maybe I'd update it a whole lot more! I always think of interesting stories to tell - hilarious ones at that - and other things to share, yet never have time for it. So, in lieu of posting for the past month... I'll give you 10 things. :) Enjoy!
1. I leave for Italy on Friday... I am STOKED. Not really for the Italy part - mostly the Paris, France part at the end of the trip. Holler!
2. I made STRAIGHT A's this semester. Mmmmmhmmm. I never thought that possible... ESPECIALLY not at the school I go to - shitty University, at best. Although, Straight A's does not translate to a 4.0... because if you get a 90, you've got an A-. :) Either way, I made the dean's list and I'm incredibly excited that I made all A's. Go me!
3. Michael was supposed to move to DC while I was gone in Italy, now that may not happen. I think he's going to be here for the summer.... and leave in August. That's more along my time frame lines. Interesting ;)
4. I have so much to prepare before I leave on Friday. PLUS I have class for the trip all week. Lovely, right?
5. I think I'm getting sick. Last night I had the worst stomach ache ever... and this morning, one of my lymph nodes were swollen. I feel like sha-poopie.
6. Rae and her boyfriend are "engaged" now... so happy for them!
7. I have ONE class left and I'll be a college graduate. Hooray!!
Ok, so maybe only 7 for right now. I have a feeling there's SO much more to share but I just can't think of it all right now :) Have a good day!
1. I leave for Italy on Friday... I am STOKED. Not really for the Italy part - mostly the Paris, France part at the end of the trip. Holler!
2. I made STRAIGHT A's this semester. Mmmmmhmmm. I never thought that possible... ESPECIALLY not at the school I go to - shitty University, at best. Although, Straight A's does not translate to a 4.0... because if you get a 90, you've got an A-. :) Either way, I made the dean's list and I'm incredibly excited that I made all A's. Go me!
3. Michael was supposed to move to DC while I was gone in Italy, now that may not happen. I think he's going to be here for the summer.... and leave in August. That's more along my time frame lines. Interesting ;)
4. I have so much to prepare before I leave on Friday. PLUS I have class for the trip all week. Lovely, right?
5. I think I'm getting sick. Last night I had the worst stomach ache ever... and this morning, one of my lymph nodes were swollen. I feel like sha-poopie.
6. Rae and her boyfriend are "engaged" now... so happy for them!
7. I have ONE class left and I'll be a college graduate. Hooray!!
Ok, so maybe only 7 for right now. I have a feeling there's SO much more to share but I just can't think of it all right now :) Have a good day!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Sham-bam-a-lam...
My birthday was fan-tabulous, as always. I've been secretly afraid of turning 25... but I am. It's really weird now. I don't know how the days make a difference, but they do.
School is nearing end... I've only got 2 1/2 weeks left of class, essentially. That's with the 1/2 being the two days I have to go for a presentation and an exam. This semester has flown by, and I'm excited about that.
I leave for Italy/Paris on the 15th of May (only a little over a month away!) and I'm super excited. I have a lot of things to plan (a hotel or something in Paris) Oh, before I forget - Odette, I really would LOVE some pointers from you on what to do there... so send them my way!
Michael got the job promotion and will be moving to DC at the end of May/beginning of June as well. I'm really sad about this because I have to be here for ONE stupid class this summer :( Which means I won't get to move there until the beginning of August. That's two WHOLE months without him!
Speaking of - we've had some crazy times these past few weeks - but everything is somehow working out just perfectly. I suppose that's what is supposed to happen when God's the center of your relationship. He has been the sweetest bf ever :)
Carrie is in NOLA for the weekend and as happy as a pea in a pod... Blaire arranged a little surprise thing for me on my birthday with Michael. We had SO Much fun and I love her for it!!!
I'll be so excited when all of the craziness is over and I can feel normal again. I've got the itch to buy a Wii and Wii Fit. An itch that's lasted at least a few weeks (that's how I know I REALLY want something...) It's only $350 for everything... but then again, I AM going to my favorite city in the world in just a month and am going to need all the funds I've got to make it happen. Ohhhhh how I just loooove being responsible.
Hope you guys are doing well. Hell, maybe some of you have stopped reading because I write so infrequently. Please bear with me, I PROMISE it'll get interesting again!!!
School is nearing end... I've only got 2 1/2 weeks left of class, essentially. That's with the 1/2 being the two days I have to go for a presentation and an exam. This semester has flown by, and I'm excited about that.
I leave for Italy/Paris on the 15th of May (only a little over a month away!) and I'm super excited. I have a lot of things to plan (a hotel or something in Paris) Oh, before I forget - Odette, I really would LOVE some pointers from you on what to do there... so send them my way!
Michael got the job promotion and will be moving to DC at the end of May/beginning of June as well. I'm really sad about this because I have to be here for ONE stupid class this summer :( Which means I won't get to move there until the beginning of August. That's two WHOLE months without him!
Speaking of - we've had some crazy times these past few weeks - but everything is somehow working out just perfectly. I suppose that's what is supposed to happen when God's the center of your relationship. He has been the sweetest bf ever :)
Carrie is in NOLA for the weekend and as happy as a pea in a pod... Blaire arranged a little surprise thing for me on my birthday with Michael. We had SO Much fun and I love her for it!!!
I'll be so excited when all of the craziness is over and I can feel normal again. I've got the itch to buy a Wii and Wii Fit. An itch that's lasted at least a few weeks (that's how I know I REALLY want something...) It's only $350 for everything... but then again, I AM going to my favorite city in the world in just a month and am going to need all the funds I've got to make it happen. Ohhhhh how I just loooove being responsible.
Hope you guys are doing well. Hell, maybe some of you have stopped reading because I write so infrequently. Please bear with me, I PROMISE it'll get interesting again!!!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
10 Things going on right now...
Ohhhh my how long its been since I've updated. And there are a ton of things to update as well.
1. School is ONE MONTH from being done for the semester. Hallelujah! (and FOUR months from being done altogether!!)
2. I leave for Italy on May 15th and am tacking on a few days in Paris until June 2nd. I cannot WAIT!
3. I am so incredibly busy right now, it's absolutely ridiculous.
4. Because I'm so busy, I've decided to quit going to my small group. I know, I was SO excited about it before, but right now I don't have the time - and I don't think that I get that much out of it.
5. Michael may or may not be moving in :)
6. Michael and I may or may not be moving to Washington, DC in August.
7. It's my birthday on Saturday. I'm old. :(
8. I filed my taxes yesterday and, surprisingly, I'm getting something back from this lovely government. Who would have thought?
9. annndd... the baby is up... back to my nannying duties!
1. School is ONE MONTH from being done for the semester. Hallelujah! (and FOUR months from being done altogether!!)
2. I leave for Italy on May 15th and am tacking on a few days in Paris until June 2nd. I cannot WAIT!
3. I am so incredibly busy right now, it's absolutely ridiculous.
4. Because I'm so busy, I've decided to quit going to my small group. I know, I was SO excited about it before, but right now I don't have the time - and I don't think that I get that much out of it.
5. Michael may or may not be moving in :)
6. Michael and I may or may not be moving to Washington, DC in August.
7. It's my birthday on Saturday. I'm old. :(
8. I filed my taxes yesterday and, surprisingly, I'm getting something back from this lovely government. Who would have thought?
9. annndd... the baby is up... back to my nannying duties!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Life is going to change...
This morning I woke up. Made some surprise pancakes for Michael (which he enjoyed very much so). And then rushed off to an 8AM meeting halfway across the city.
In my rush from his house to my house to get ready and then off to my meeting, I had an epiphany of sorts.
Brief history of my life:
Graduated High School and went to State. Stayed there for a year and a half then transfered to a 2 yr school. Got my degree. All the while nannying and connecting myself to the corporate world (I've always had a job and I've always gone to school). I started working at my company 3 years ago and moved quickly into the Marketing department. Yes, without the proper degree. I have a Business Associate's degree. I've been working on my Marketing Bachelor's back at State but stopped this semester.
Ok. You're up to speed.
This question has been looming in my head since I opted out of school in December. There was no light at the end of the tunnel. I was miserable... working 40 plus hours a week... going to school... managing a long distance relationship (which failed, by the way)... it just wasn't working. Anywho... That's where this idea came from.
Well. Here's the reality. I have two little sisters that are extremely precious and only 7 and 8 years old. I wouldn't be able to leave them here if I tried. I have Michael here. I most definitely couldn't leave him. I have roots here. I have connections here. I'd be an idiot to leave and think I'd be able to come back just as easily. So, for now, I'll kiss my dreams of living in Paris buh-bye... I'll go one day. You just wait!
I'm about to leave the best job in the world to go to school full time for 2 1/2 semesters to get my degree. I know, I know, I'm going to rack up about $30K in debt... as well as take a risk I need to be willing to take. But I'm up for the challenge. Not having the degree is holding me back more than you can imagine. Granted, I have a freaking amazing job at a fabulous company and make more money than most people my age do... but I'm not going to continue to be miserable trying to get this degree.
If I were to continue doing what I'm doing... the degree will be finished in 2011 and would have spent $18K on something that could cost me $7K. Ya see? So I'll start this summer... and go through next spring... and hopefully be done with it.
I'll be able to go wherever I want with my experience and my degree. And be happy :) Hooray!
Michael is going back to school as well. He's going online though. But I definitely need him for support. I told him tonight that he can quiz me before my tests and reward me with smooches when I get the answers right. Sounds good to me!!
So that's what's going to change. No more frivilous spending... and trips out of town whenever I want. I'm selling my car... :( :( :( and driving the old one. I'm just going to have to suck it up for 9 months until I can get what I want.
And then I can do whatever I want! Hooray!
School is not fun, but necessary.
L'école n'est pas amusement, mais nécessaire.
In my rush from his house to my house to get ready and then off to my meeting, I had an epiphany of sorts.
Brief history of my life:
Graduated High School and went to State. Stayed there for a year and a half then transfered to a 2 yr school. Got my degree. All the while nannying and connecting myself to the corporate world (I've always had a job and I've always gone to school). I started working at my company 3 years ago and moved quickly into the Marketing department. Yes, without the proper degree. I have a Business Associate's degree. I've been working on my Marketing Bachelor's back at State but stopped this semester.
Ok. You're up to speed.
This question has been looming in my head since I opted out of school in December. There was no light at the end of the tunnel. I was miserable... working 40 plus hours a week... going to school... managing a long distance relationship (which failed, by the way)... it just wasn't working. Anywho... That's where this idea came from.
Well. Here's the reality. I have two little sisters that are extremely precious and only 7 and 8 years old. I wouldn't be able to leave them here if I tried. I have Michael here. I most definitely couldn't leave him. I have roots here. I have connections here. I'd be an idiot to leave and think I'd be able to come back just as easily. So, for now, I'll kiss my dreams of living in Paris buh-bye... I'll go one day. You just wait!
I'm about to leave the best job in the world to go to school full time for 2 1/2 semesters to get my degree. I know, I know, I'm going to rack up about $30K in debt... as well as take a risk I need to be willing to take. But I'm up for the challenge. Not having the degree is holding me back more than you can imagine. Granted, I have a freaking amazing job at a fabulous company and make more money than most people my age do... but I'm not going to continue to be miserable trying to get this degree.
If I were to continue doing what I'm doing... the degree will be finished in 2011 and would have spent $18K on something that could cost me $7K. Ya see? So I'll start this summer... and go through next spring... and hopefully be done with it.
I'll be able to go wherever I want with my experience and my degree. And be happy :) Hooray!
Michael is going back to school as well. He's going online though. But I definitely need him for support. I told him tonight that he can quiz me before my tests and reward me with smooches when I get the answers right. Sounds good to me!!
So that's what's going to change. No more frivilous spending... and trips out of town whenever I want. I'm selling my car... :( :( :( and driving the old one. I'm just going to have to suck it up for 9 months until I can get what I want.
And then I can do whatever I want! Hooray!
School is not fun, but necessary.
L'école n'est pas amusement, mais nécessaire.
Friday, February 1, 2008
France-bound?
Life comes at you fast. Ideas come at you even faster.
The other night I was thinking (as I was having trouble falling asleep) about my life... when I could start back school, what direction I might want to take with that, what city I really want to live in... you know, all the grand life questions we have to answer in our early 20's.
I have a passion that runs as deep as my love for France - the entire French culture, at that. So here's my great idea...
Ready for it?
I can get an International Marketing degree from a school in Paris... all the while working for the same company I work for now because we have a French partner.
Well hot damn.
Entertaining this thought only in my head didn't do any of it justice, so I've done a little research.
School - There are several programs the French Consulate offers in this respect. You can take an English taught course and learn French before/during your stay and be just fine. The requirements are pretty easy... 2.5 gpa, some college. I'm not quite sure how it translate with the courses I've already completed. In reality, I've already got my associate's degree in Business and am a semester in on the Marketing program here.
Cost - Since the French government values education so much, they put a lot of money towards it. It's only about 600 euros a year. Yep. That's less than $1000 a year for school. They offer housing for International students so it's only about 600-800 euros a month in living expenses. (including food, rent, travel expenses, etc) The French Consulate also grants a ton of scholarships each year.
I've pretty much no boyfriend, no "best friends" that i'd be leaving for the next 2 years... and I could literally keep my job (probably have different responsibilities at our French partner) and would be able to come back and see my family.
I talked with a few coworkers that I count upon for advice and mentoring... before I could pose the question... they both said "GO" (and I wasn't even talking with them at the same time). Any work/school overseas looks INCREDIBLE on your resume, not to mention the life experiences you gain from all of it.
The last step is to talk to my mom about it all. Logistically, when it could happen (i'm assuming not until AT LEAST Fall semester starts), what I would do with my stuff here (storage?) and my car (sell it? ohh... that's soooo :( sad) and my cat (maybe someone can keep her for just a little while). It most certainly won't be permanent... but it's something I really want to do.
And when I really want to do something, I make it happen. So we'll see how this all unfolds in the next few weeks or so. I'm brushing up on my French skills as we speak!
C'est la vie!
That's life!!
[clarification: by no "best friends" that i'd be leaving... meaning they've both moved cross country and I only get to talk to them by phone/email anyway, so it wouldn't be like I'm leaving them here.]
The other night I was thinking (as I was having trouble falling asleep) about my life... when I could start back school, what direction I might want to take with that, what city I really want to live in... you know, all the grand life questions we have to answer in our early 20's.
I have a passion that runs as deep as my love for France - the entire French culture, at that. So here's my great idea...
Ready for it?
I can get an International Marketing degree from a school in Paris... all the while working for the same company I work for now because we have a French partner.
Well hot damn.
Entertaining this thought only in my head didn't do any of it justice, so I've done a little research.
School - There are several programs the French Consulate offers in this respect. You can take an English taught course and learn French before/during your stay and be just fine. The requirements are pretty easy... 2.5 gpa, some college. I'm not quite sure how it translate with the courses I've already completed. In reality, I've already got my associate's degree in Business and am a semester in on the Marketing program here.
Cost - Since the French government values education so much, they put a lot of money towards it. It's only about 600 euros a year. Yep. That's less than $1000 a year for school. They offer housing for International students so it's only about 600-800 euros a month in living expenses. (including food, rent, travel expenses, etc) The French Consulate also grants a ton of scholarships each year.
I've pretty much no boyfriend, no "best friends" that i'd be leaving for the next 2 years... and I could literally keep my job (probably have different responsibilities at our French partner) and would be able to come back and see my family.
I talked with a few coworkers that I count upon for advice and mentoring... before I could pose the question... they both said "GO" (and I wasn't even talking with them at the same time). Any work/school overseas looks INCREDIBLE on your resume, not to mention the life experiences you gain from all of it.
The last step is to talk to my mom about it all. Logistically, when it could happen (i'm assuming not until AT LEAST Fall semester starts), what I would do with my stuff here (storage?) and my car (sell it? ohh... that's soooo :( sad) and my cat (maybe someone can keep her for just a little while). It most certainly won't be permanent... but it's something I really want to do.
And when I really want to do something, I make it happen. So we'll see how this all unfolds in the next few weeks or so. I'm brushing up on my French skills as we speak!
C'est la vie!
That's life!!
[clarification: by no "best friends" that i'd be leaving... meaning they've both moved cross country and I only get to talk to them by phone/email anyway, so it wouldn't be like I'm leaving them here.]
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