The bus system in France is quite good, and it is just a matter of knowing which "ligne" (line number) you have to take, and where to change lignes once you get to the main switching station. It is not as easy as one might think. A woman who lives close to me, also studying through USAC, and I decided to take the bus together...two are better than one, as they say.
The bus for Pau (which I had to be on otherwise I would be late for class...a serious offense here in France) leaves at 8:16am. I left my house "ce matin" (this morning) at a few minutes to 8:00am. However, having gotten to the end of the street, I couldn't remember which way to turn. I took a chance, and, as odds have it, lost the fifty-fifty bet. Once I reached a roundabout I had never seen before, I realized I had to turn around (mon dieu, French people drive fast and don't believe in traffic laws! I almost got hit crossing the street). Unfortunately, by this point, I had no concept of how far I had to go to get to the stop, much less if I could physically get there on time (it was now about 8:11). I called Pascal (my host dad) in a panic, and he kindly offered to take me to universtity. "Non, non!" I said, as I rushed down the street, looking far from glamorous by this point. He gave me directions to cross the bridge, and then told me to call if I had any trouble. I got to the bus stop (though a different one than I where I was supposed to meet my friend). Luckily, a kind French lady affirmed my question, "Est-ce-que cette lingne 7?" as "ligne 7" drove up. All is well that ends well, but it was quite a stressful adventure. We managed to change lines downtown, and got to l'universite on time.
In other news, I had my first dinner with my host family tonight. The mother is on holiday in Northern Spain this week, so it's just Pascal, me, and the three children (7, 3, et un bebe). We had ham and a root vegetable medley, followed by camembert with cherries for dessert. C'est tres bien.
Now I really must go do some homework, and get ready for tomorrow. "Ce weekend," some friends and I are going to Toulouse, also called the Pink City. Interesting fact about France: each town has drastically different architecture because they use all local building materials. Toulouse is the Pink City because they have very pink brick. Jamais sais.
Interesting fact about Pau: it rains "tout le temps" (all the time). I'm not overstating: for the last two years, it has rained everyday. The weather is quite unpredictable altogether, because it is so close to "les montaignes."
Bon soir,
Marguerite
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