Sitting In My Bedroom, Finally!

I made it! Yes, folks, I am now secure in the little bedroom where I will be living for the next five months! It's really exciting.

The flight out was nothing special. Aunt Roxy got me to Sea-Tac and saw me off, and I went through security without any problems. I'd never flown Icelandair before. The guy sitting next to me was very pleasant; he'd been born in Wisconsin, lived in Australia for 10 years and so got dual citizenship, and had now lived in Stockholm, Sweden for 3 1/2 years. They don't serve complimentary food, so I had eaten before I left and bought a sandwich and orange juice to take with me. Of course, I got so absorbed in my book on the flight that I didn't think to eat or sleep until I was done, at which point there was only 1 1/2 left in the flight. I tried to take a nap anyway, but that was when an old guy in the row behind me and across the aisle fainted, and there was quite a crowd trying to make sure he was okay. The paramedics took him as soon as we landed, so I'm just wishing him all the best.

The annoying thing about the flight was that I didn't know I'd have to go through another (EU-sanctioned) security check when I got to Reykjavik. It was full-on; metal detector, shoes off, laptops out, no liquids. They even made you take all your electronics out of the bags to scan more closely. I didn't have a problem with the scanning, I just wish I'd known; then maybe I would've drank my orange juice and not had it taken away! After going through, they stamped my passport and I wandered through the deserted 6am Keflavik airport, trying to find my flight, which was an hour delayed and at a different gate than my boarding pass said. Nearly missed the boarding call, but got on the flight okay and was off again. This time I slept most of the way to France, although I was awake when we came across the Channel to see the coastline come up beneath us. I once again forgot to eat my sandwich (which they did not confiscate), making it a good 9 or 10 hours since I'd eaten.

Wandered through the labyrinth that is Charles de Gaulle, found my baggage, and by a stroke of good fortune had no problems at all meeting up with Valeria. She and I had decided to take the train together, to ease any problems aside with strength in numbers. We ended up sitting in the Charles de Gaulle/Roissy train station for two hours, which wasn't unpleasant except you had to pay for the bathrooms and there was no heat. Boarding the warm train was wonderful, although we ended up in separate cars. I mostly dozed on the way to our connection in St. Pierre des Corps, being too nervous about missing the stop to actually sleep. I *did* finally remember my sandwich, and felt much less dizzy after eating it.

When I departed the train in St. Pierre des Corps, Valeria had picked up another fellow traveler; Joel was arriving the same day. Our now trio made the connecting five minute train hop, and came out into the splendorous darkness of our first day (evening) in Tours. I proved my skills as a nimble navigator and we walked the rest of the way to Le Nonante, where we'll be staying.

Jacqueline answered the door, after a slightly nervous moment where we thought maybe no-one would. She's the daughter-in-law of the woman who used to own Le Nonante. Unfortunately that lady, Madame Genevieve Dhommée, died a few weeks ago. Jacqueline and Madame Dhommée's son Xavier have decided to run the place now, and moved in for the purpose. We were shown our bedrooms and told about the rules (always lock the door when you leave, don't tie up the phone lines, turn all the lights out if you're the last one awake). I'm sharing a room with Valeria, which isn't necessarily ideal, but not because I don't like Valeria; only because I'd rather be alone. If it comes to roommates, though, Valeria and I seem to get along pretty well. She's really nice, and we had fun being camwhore tourists on the way out.

The bedroom itself is adorable. The walls are some kind of burlap-y fabric, and there are several landscapes on the walls, in addition to a copy of Café la Nuit. It's small, but in a cozy way, and the house has the particularly personable kind of smell and feel and character that only comes with age. Also, the beds are very squishy. I sat down on mine and I swear I sank in a foot.

When Xavier and Mathias got home (Mathias is their seven-year-old boy), Xavier repeated much of what Jacqueline had said and we had dinner. The meal was good, although I'm really noticing the flaws in my French. This semester is exactly what I need to get myself turned around right again. After dinner we helped wash up and set the table for breakfast (a cool little time-saving chore). Then we went upstairs and put our stuff away and started to settle. I tried to put pictures on facebook, but it was being annoying. I'll try again before I go to bed.

Tomorrow, my mission is to take pictures of the house and some of the surrounding area and possibly go exploring a little. Grant and Mamie get in tomorrow night, which should be lots of fun. Grant always makes everyone feel more at ease, and at this point in the semester, when we're all still a little shy and not quite at home, that should be just the thing.

One day down, five wonderful months to go!