Maria's French Christmas & Visit to Paris

January 7, 2006

First of all, sorry I haven't sent a report in so long, I have been so busy this past month... but I want to wish you all a late Merry Christmas and a Happy New year!!!!
Well, I am going to start telling you how I spent Christmas in France; this is my first time far away from my family, and I thought that even though they are not with me, I wouldn't get homesick, but for the first time it caught me by surprise and a few days before Christmas I was sad and wanting to be with them so bad!!! anyways, on the 24th we had a little dinner because here you  can't eat a lot before Christmas day because the next day you are gonna eat  A LOT. So, in the morning of the 25th, we opened gifts and I got some really cool things!! then we had breakfast and got ready to go to my grandparents house. There, all my family came, aunts, uncles, cousins that came from the south of France and Italy. It was fun, and different, and sometimes I felt a little weird because here, in the north of France, people don't give each other hugs AT ALL, and I am sooo used to that and I miss it a lot, and that day I wanted to hug someone but I didn't feel comfortable enough to do it.. =( In the afternoon, we went to my second host family's house and opened more gifts there, oh! with all my cousins and family because they are related.

After Christmas, my host family took me to PARIS!!!!!!!! that was my dream and you guys don't know how long I waited for that!!!! We went for three days; we arrived at night and we came in in Paris by the Champs-Elysées and it was like a dream come true haha all decorated with Christmas lights, and the site was just indescribable!!! the next day we visited Le Louvre! it was amazing, we woke up very early in the morning so we didn't have to make a long line, because like at 10 am there was a loooooooong line; of course I went to all the tourist spots: The Mona Lisa, The Victory of Samothrace, Venus de Milo, etc...  then we visited the church Sacre Coeur which is beautiful too; after we passed by Moulin Rouge which is located in a very uhmm... how can I describe it? if you want to have fun one night, go to that zone haha; the next day Sylvie took me to Notre Dame, Le jardin de Luxemburg, Latin Quarter, Galerie Lafayette, a very expensive and luxurious neighborhood, and to check out the most expensive stores in Paris like Dior, Colier, Bvulgary, Rolex, etc... at night we visited Le Petit Palais which is a museum and after we passed by the Eiffel Tower which is one of the most awesome things I have ever seen! it's just unbelievable! especially at night when it is all illuminated. The next day we went to the Eiffel Tower again, but this time we actually went on it all the way to the top, of course we went up the elevator because right now the weather is really really cold!!!! and when we were outside to see the view it was the coldest I have ever been, my fingers hurt of how cold the wind was, and when we were going down, it started snowing!. We went back home and it usually takes 1 hour and a half to get where I live, however because of snow, cars were sliding and  it took us 5 hours to get here.

The next weekend, it was New Year's Eve, and my district (just the exchange students), we got together and went to a French party where we partied all night! it was fun! and then January the 2nd I was packing all day  because I switched host families!, they live down the street of my first host families, and it feels weird because I spend Christmas here... but I think I'm going to get used to it faster because I know them already and because I speak french now... it's easier. I have two little brothers, 12 and 8, and for the first time and the ''big sister'', it feels great!

Well that's all for now, and I wish you all a very happy new year! and have fun as I am!!

à bientôt !!!