First Snow of the Season

The first snow of the season hit Dijon the week before Christmas. In fact, Dijon was officially the coldest city in France at -15C at one point during that week. This is the first time I have actually lived in the snow; before this experience, I could count on one hand the number of times I had seen it. It was really exciting for this LA girl to see snow fall, and I actually got caught under it unexpectedly in the middle of a run. I decided to stop in the middle of my workout to lay down on the grass and watch it as it fell on me (there is a magic about snow...the world slows down when it falls). The next day I took this picture while on a stroll through the park.

Strasbourg

My friend Zara and I have known each other since we were twelve. Unfortunately, Zara moved away to Orange County for high school, but we still managed to keep in touch from time to time. It was quite the coincidence when Zara found out that I was in France thanks to good ole Facebook. Ever since, we have been traveling together throughout different cities both inside and outside of France. We decided to meet in Strasbourg for the Christmas Markets. Strasbourg is in the Alsace region of France, where the culture differs from the rest of the country, and they even speak their own language. Eastern France was going through a cold spell at the time, so we did everything we could to escape the cold. We ended up seeking solace in vin chaud--warm, spiced wine (Thank you "Golden Gate" bar!). We couchsurfed with a really sweet girl studying English at the university there, and in yet another attempt to escape the cold, we all huddled under covers together and watched the entire fourth season of "Sex and the City" together in one evening. Thanks Lucie :)

A French Thanksgiving

My French family had never celebrated Thanksgiving before and I didn't want to miss out on one of my favorite holidays, so we decided to have a Thanksgiving gathering Chez Marie-Françoise. It was my first time really preparing a meal for guests, let alone Thanksgiving dinner, but with a little help from my friends, it turned out to be an amazing evening (if it weren't for MF, I don't think there would have been any way in the world I would have found lait concentré non-sucré--non-sweetened condensed milk--on my own). It also marked a personal milestone for me, as I opened a champagne bottle by myself for the first time; of course, this was after a good deal of stress and detailed instruction from the experts. A good time was had by all, and I am confident Thanksgiving will be an annual tradition Chez Marie-Françoise.

We Have Some Catching Up To Do!

The hustle and bustle of birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and work made me neglect blogging, but here I am three months later! Having been absent for a while means that there is some catching up to be done, so the following posts will be an effort at that (and if it falls short, please forgive me).