The List

There are a great many things I would like to do and experience while I am abroad, and in order to help me reach the goals, I decided to compile this list (though a few items are also from a list a good friend made for me). Below is the list and I will post about each item that gets checked off. If it seems that I am doing a poor job of making it through the list, feel free to badger me about it. :)

1.      Become fairly fluent in France

2.      Find and attend a French church

3.      Stay in touch with all of the people I love in Washington

4.      Legally have a drink with: breakfast, lunch, dinner, at a bar, with Julia, without Julia, bought by a boy, bought by a girl

5.      Go skinny dipping

6.      Go hiking

7.      Go sailing

8.      Go to a French concert

9.      Watch a sunset and sunrise

10.  Spend a day biking through French country side and writing

11.  Spend a day in a small town and learn something from the locals

12.  Walk barefoot through a field in Ireland or France

13.  Visit a small winery in the country

14.  Make a dinner for our French/international friends

15.  Befriend someone on a train

16.  Befriend a small restaurant/cafe owner

17.  Ask someone interesting to a meal

18.  Eat at an outdoor restaurant

19.  Try every food offered to me

20.  Become more knowledgeable about France’s political process

21.  Volunteer to assist some local group/project/person

22.  Read a famous piece of French literature or poetry

23.  Write poetry in French

24.  Complete a short story

25.  Do something I don’t think I can do

26.  Do three completely spontaneous things

27.  Buy something I can wear that makes me feel fabulous

28.  Dance in the rain

29.  Find and attend a lindy hop venue

30.  Lindy bomb a music bar

*Note: there are also a great many places I would like to visit while abroad, but those may have to go in a separate list. 

A Few Things Before I Go

Bonjour! 
Before I leave, I thought I'd offer some context to this adventure. I am traveling to France in order to study abroad, something I've wanted to do since the 8th grade, when I first learned such an opportunity was possible.

Why France?
In high school I took French for two years, and the language and culture as portrayed through my charismatic teacher captivated me. So, in college I continued taking French, and in addition to becoming more acquainted with the language, I became acquainted with one Julia Vigen, now one of my closest friends with whom I am sharing this adventure.

Our lives overlapped in so many ways; both communication majors, both taking French, both interested in dancing, both planning to study abroad spring semester of our junior years. It was a serendipitous pairing. When we began searching for study abroad programs separately and both placed the CEA French Riviera program at the top of our potential lists, all other options became irrelevant. So, in our sophomore year at WSU it was decided that we would attend SKEMA university in Southern France.

The Location and Program Specifics 
Now, all of our planning has come to fruition. We will study at the small international business school, SKEMA, from January 2 until May 12. The school is located in Sophia Antipolis, a small industrial area near Nice. Julia and I have an apartment together in Antibes, a small town about 15 minutes from Nice (see map below). The classes we take at SKEMA will transfer back to WSU, where we will complete our senior years in 2013. While we are taking classes primarily in English, we will be surrounded by French people and fully intend to speak the language consistently.

A Map...you can click on it to better see the area where we are living:

The Gratitude
I am extremely grateful to my parents who have encouraged and helped me to follow through with my desire to take this journey. I am grateful that Julia and I have the opportunity to take this journey together. I am grateful to those of you who are following along with the journey, and will hopefully help me stay accountable with "The List," which will appear in the following post. This is a truly fantastic opportunity, and I intend to make the most of it by challenging myself, being open to the foreign cultures I will encounter, and sharing all I learn and do with thoseI love.

P.S. Julia and I are happy to welcome visitors, so if you are able to get to Europe while we are there, let us know!