Bourges, France

Posted on October 2, 2011 by nathanielorion

It is has been far too long since I’ve written here, but rest assured I am having a wonderful time here in France.

I took a spin on the velo tonight, toured the neighborhood then the nearby lake during sunset. I live in quite a beautiful town. I have had some chances to explore – something I greatly enjoy doing – and I liked what I saw. I love the narrow cobblestone streets, the hanging flower pots, and medieval style building structure of centreville.

(For optimal viewing and caption reading, view on the website)

: Sur la rue moyenne

: One of many narrow cobble streets

: Many restaurants along this road

: Interesting buildings that look almost german

: Building up close

: rue d’auron. The photo does not nearly do it justice. It is particularly stunning during sunset

: Building on Place Cujas

: Place Europe. Some nice fountains. There are also many flags above

: Cathedral as seen from the Boulevard de Strasbourg

: More cathedral

: Cathedral

: Uhh, some rock statue/fountain in the cathedral park. Note the small bird on top

: Interesting looking lighting shop

: A bar, named after another town in france. Worth picture because a friend lives there

I live in the city of Bourges, it is situated in the department of Cher in the region Centre. It is basically in the very center of France. Most locals don’t seem to think of the city as anything special, but from what I’ve seen it’s quite nice. There are many (clothing) shops along the rue moyenne, and many other interesting stores along the rue d’auron. A big attraction here is the cathedral, cathedral St. Etienne. It can be seen from many angles, and many places around the outskirts of the city, it is centrally located and quite large.

A note on food: I love the bread and the cheese here. It is absolutely phenomenal. I will soon photograph and describe the different breads and cheeses – but I’m still learning the names. The rest of the food is good too. Normally we have a simple dish of pasta or maybe simoule, for there is not time to prepare a big meal and we eat late (about 9) anyway. Dessert or some small treat is often common after the meal as well.

That is about all for now on the city! I wanted to share the photos I took on my adventures. I will try to update again soon on school (lots to say on the subject) and some observances of the culture as well.

A bientot!

AFS New York and Paris

Posted on September 20, 2011 by nathanielorion

I have been settling in to my new life and new home here in France for over two weeks now, and it is about time I recounted my adventures here on green-flamingo.

Just like everyone else, permit me to relay the details of the orientations and the first few days – or in my case weeks – in France. I was very interested myself to know what the New York and Paris orientations consisted of, but could not find much info on previous blogs. I soon figured out why, for really it is no big deal at all.

Hotel. The Doubletree, near JFK.
Normally rooms shared by two, separate beds
A few orientations, the evening and also the next morning before departure
Free time to meet with others, both downstairs or in rooms

Next we move on to the transportation phase – an exciting but tiring 36 hour adventure. There was airport sitting, plane riding, no sleeping, scenery-out-the-window-gazing, landing. After that there was more airport sitting, Swiss airport exploring, coffee drinking, picture taking, airport walking. After a short flight from Zurich to Paris, there was again airport sitting, and bus-riding before we finally reached our hotel. We had lots of free time there, a tour of Paris the next day, and endured a few more orientations. I was able to meet others from all over the world, and practice a lot of french and spanish, it was very interesting. The next day (the count is now at 5, on Sunday) we boarded our trains and headed our separate ways.

I am living in the region Centre, in the city of Bourges. After the train ride from Paris, all the AFSers in Centre united with our host families at the station and relocated for a picnic and meeting. Following that I headed home with my host family. I was very fatigued the first day after the long journey before arrival, but I was shown the house and briefly shown the town. We had home made pizza for dinner, a tradition passed on from Etienne’s family. I then enjoyed a goodnight’s rest before a busy week. More to come soon!

Here I go!

Posted on August 31, 2011 by nathanielorion

I was hoping I would be able to write an extensive post today, detailing all the trials and travails of my journey up to this point. I sit here now, about to leave, to embark on a ten month journey to France, that’s all I ended up having time to say for now. See everyone next year!

A la prochaine, Pennsylvanie

Nathaniel Abroad

Life in France

Bourges, France

AFS New York and Paris

Here I go!