et voila

I've arrived in Paris, no luggage lost in the process of getting here which was a huge relief.

Been living in a hostel for the past few days with the rest of the program until we move into our homestays/apartments. My friend Julia and I are living with a family in the 12th arrondisement, near the Bastille. Four kids (ages 7 - 14), a cat, a garden, and we're living in the third floor of a converted convent. It's "quaint" and "has character" - basically, it's really old. And there's no Internet, so we might have to get it installed, etc. But we'll see how things go, I'm crossing my fingers that I'll pick up a wireless signal.

First few days have a been a bit stressful since its been chock full of orientation meetings about paying rent, opening bank accounts, getting cellphones, etc etc etc. Today I managed to walk into a cellphone store, talk to salesperson, and buy a cellphone. So, hurrah, my French isn't complete shit.
Tonight I think I'll finally get a chance to relax, see Paris a bit. So far I've only seen the subways and our campus pretty much. (And by campus I mean small building)

I miss the city. I miss my family. I miss you guys. Paris is still very foreign so I feel a bit stranded, but hopefully things will get better as time goes on. Am rethinking going to Prague in the spring, because frankly the thought of going through this whole process again in a few months is a bit daunting, and I'm just not sure it's worth it. But we'll see.

Anyway, expect letters from me in the next few weeks. Will put up pictures when I get the Internet (I'm at an Internet cafe now so I'm typing as quickly as possible).

So that's all for now, I'll update again when I get the chance.

Bisous!