Back from break

Break was really fun! My friend and fellow English assistant Danielle and I went to Paris where we met up with one of my friends from home, Hana Katsenes. It was Hana's first time in Paris, so we did the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomph, Sacré Coeur, and the Louvre. The weather on the first day was HORRIBLE, we even got hailed on during our 3 hour walking tour of Paris. If you could mentally get past the wind and celestial vomit, the tour was very interesting. The hostel we stayed in was kind of like 'Little America' where half the staff were native English speakers and about 75% of the guests were from the US. However, the facilities were very clean and very new so the comfort was well worth the 'inauthenticity.' We stayed in Paris for 3 days before heading down to Capbreton where I showed Hana a little of the southwest coast of France.

In Capbreton, after walking along the beach a little, we saw the old Nazi bunkers that have been left to the mercy of the ocean and time. The town seems to have no desire to spend the money to either maintain them or take them out, and the shape of the coast has changed ever so slightly so that high tide washes up past them. They are just now a decrepit peice of history that has become part of the coast. Then, we spent 5 hours in a resaurant sipping our coffees and watching the sun set. After two days in Capbreton, we went to Bordeaux and stayed with Danielle for a night. It was a good thing Danielle and Hana hit it off because I had to leave Sunday evening to get back to my town whereas Hana left Monday morning. Yay for my friends meeting eachother!

My trip back was not a lot of fun because I didn't plan well for it so I had to take a train and then wait 4 hours for a bus and then walk nearly two miles in 40° rain toting a suitcase back up the hill to my place. Next time I will DEFINATELY be talking with potential rides long before leaving Aire sur l'Adour!
Here are some pictures for your enjoyment. Better late than never, right?
Hana and the Nazi barracks
Me, the Louvre, and the wind

Danielle, probably in some famous garden that is very pretty between the months of April and October.
Me, Danielle, and the German guy in front of Sacré Coeur
At the restaurant where Hana and I spent the whole afternoon, we asked for a wine list. They didn't have one in print so rather than rattling them off to me, he pulled the sign off the wall. We found this hilarious.