Some of my new friends!

Here's a photo taken of us at a restaurant called "Les Brasseurs."  It was one of my new friends' birthday and we were celebrating with some large brewskies (obviously).  But from left to right starting with the girl with the curly hair you have: Amy, Sarah, Mark, Lily, Anne (the birthday girl), ME, Simon, (someone new I can't remember the name), and Pip.

GUN NOT REAL!!!

Here's a picture of me from the Strasbourg Zombie Walk!  I got to take a photo with one of the "zombie exterminators."  Apparently, he had a hunch that I was a zombie myself.

More from around Strasbourg!

So I've been perusing around the town with some of my new friends taking pictures and taking in the unique atmosphere.  Some of us found a "médiatheque," which is like a hip library targeted towards young people.  It has a coffee shop inside and some interesting art all around it.  I card a library card and have been renting out cd's, books, and movies which has been great!  Also, I got some good shots of the huge cathedrale which sits right in the center of downtown Strasbourg.  This is more of a touristy area, so I don't go here too often since I'm a local now (pish posh haha).  Oh and lastly, I finally got around to visiting "La Petite France," which is basically the historical village in town (also very touristy, but very pretty). 

Below is a photo of the "médiatheque."  It's the white building with the windows running along the side of it.  It has a cool pedestrian bridge leading towards it over the river as well as some huge dinosaur robots art figures out front.  Also, there are always pretty swans in the water :)

Here is a picture of La Petite France where some of us walked around and had a nice lunch one sunny afternoon.  The area is known for its picturesque setting.

Boat tours are given throughout the day because the downtown area is surrounded by water and there are many historical facts and sites that can be seen from the water.  They are called "bateaux mouches"-- or fly boats.

I took this one walking up to the cathedral along one of the side streets. 

Here's a good look at the inside of the cathedral.

Back soon with more!

Some pics finally!

So I'm getting all settled into my new city and apartment and I've started taking a few pictures to show everyone my new environment.

This is right in the heart of downtown Strasbourg in an open area called Place Kleber.  This is what most of the architecture looks like.  A mixture between the French and German cultures.

The downtown Strasbourg area is actually an island surrounded by water flowing around it with roads and buildings built along it like in this picture.

Here we are in lovely Shiltigheim, the community where I live just outside of the Strasbourg downtown area.

And below are pictures of my new apartment: the living room, my bedroom, my office loft, and the kitchen!

That's all for now, but I hope I helped you get a little taste of where I am for the next few months!

Oh my gosh I left out the best part!!!

When Anne and I were walking around today we saw a huge zombie walk! There were professional make up artists in the streets decorating people up like zombies and then they were dancing and all kinds of stuff. Fun times!

French Zombie Walk!

Second update from Strasbourg!

Relax everyone... I've found an apartment.  It is conveniently located between the bustling downtown area and where I will be teaching.  There's not as much noise, it's much cheaper not in the city, it's larger than what's in the city, and I'll have a nice roommate it seems.  My roommate's name is Pierre (I know, who'da guessed? haha).  He is extremely welcoming and nice, he is a graphic designer, and he is 26 years old.  I'll be sure to take some pictures once I'm settled in on Monday.  Since I've been in Strasbourg I've been using other people's computers, so I need to be able to get on mine in order to upload all my shots.

Also, today I met one of the other people who will be teaching here named Anne.  She is actually from Down Under (Australia, that is) and has lived in Strasbourg before.  So we walked around and she showed me where some good and shopping spots were and pointed out some nice things to see.  We got on quite well and I look forward to seeing her again and meeting the other assistants. 

This coming Monday I'll be visiting the school where I'll be teaching and meeting some of the other English teachers for lunch.  Also, several of the other assistants will be arriving this week.

That's all I have for now.  Check back with me later!

I made it!

Hey Everybody!

I just wanted to let everyone know that I have made it to Strasbourg, France all in one piece and with all my luggage!  I was picked up and am now being taken care of by a lady named Chantal who is one of the permanent English teachers at the school I will be at.  I miss you all already and wish you could all be here with me.  You guys can also just ignore all the other previous posts before this one.  They're all literary and scholarly since I set up this blog originally as a school site.  But everything seems very nice so far, however I haven't done much because I'm so tired.  Don't worry, I'll get a good night's rest and hit the town the rest of the week with more exciting news to report soon! 

Until then I love you all,
Leah