Welcome to the Next Four Months!

Comin' at ya straight from my room in Aix-en-Provence with my host mom, Josette (such a sweet woman!). After three plane journeys, I'm finally here. Madrid was so bizarre. On the 9 hour flight, I made my first friend, Daniel, from the US Navy. He and I wandered around the Madrid airport together, and I waited with him as he boarded his next Spanish flight. Knowing only one person/having only one friend on the entire continent is one of the most surreal experiences. I'm very grateful for his company and I will miss him, but we'll keep in touch via email (no romance here- don't get excited). Then I listened to Spanish being spoken all around me, watched little Spanish children playing on the walking escalator, and tried to pray for a few hours. LANDED in France. Waiting for my luggage, I saw someone from my flight in a Mary Washington sweatshirt named Calvin! He used to be on the boy's frisbee team, and he might know Kyle Lefler???? Anyway, he's in my program- so exciting! I've already met 3 people who will be with me. Now I must go to sleep because I just spent the last 3 hours or so unpacking, meeting Josette's family, having a million conversations in French, explaining Catonsville and Old Bay, drank way too much wine, and ate way too much baguette and fromage. Oh man, and it's only day 1! :D