Strasbourg

And so begins my semester in Strasbourg. I arrived here today at around 4PM after a long, enjoyable 12-day seminar that brought us to Berlin, Wroclaw, and Prague and many monuments and "borders" in between. It was made all the more better by the great people that i've met so far; while I've known them only for 11 days, our group as a whole has already become close. Strasbourg's small program, 33 people in all, and the 24/7 interaction with everyone on the trip sharing the same experiences combine together to ensure that you and the rest of your group are well-bonded before getting here to Strasbourg.

I also found out, met, moved in, ate dinner, and discussed politics with my host family today. While it has only been 5 hours since I have been welcomed into their home, I know already that I will love it here. They are a very warm and cordial family that, you guessed it, speaks Italian in the house! So while learning French in school, I will be learning Italian at home and walk away from this experience either with a working knowledge of both languages, or utterly confused. I'm hoping it will be the former. I have taken a semester of Italian and so I've been able to catch words and phrases from the conversation, and I imagine things will only become better as the semester continues. The entire family is also fluent in English and is more than happy to converse with me doing so, which allows me a huge sigh of relief from my worries of not speaking the native French language. The house is beautiful, close to the SU center where I will take my classes, and the food is excellent. Horror stories of no internet and living an hour from the center are beginning to trickle in and i'm sure that there will be more stories to come. But as for me, I am one lucky and happy student here in Strasbourg as I look out my balcony and see the beautiful city alight.

Well, i'm off to bed, and so...

Bon soir, buona notte, and goodnight.

Au revoir,

Justin