Je suis arrive!

I have arrived in France! Yayy France! I had an amazingly easy flight, which certainly helped to get things off on the right foot. Also a plus- my two large bags made it safely, and none of the airline attendants called me out for my extremely large/heavy carry-ons: I definitely overdid it with my "carry-on" as a huge backpack (think travelling Southeast asia for 6 months- it is that size) with all of my books and shoes/boots/random heavy stuff, and my "purse or one personal item" which was a messanger back with my laptop, books and anything else that would fit.

Besides the extra 40kg I took in my abused carry-on allowance, I decided to maximize my carrying capacity by wearing many of my clothes. With everyone else around me in tank-tops and sandals, I looked like a total dumbass wearing my snow boots, jeans, 10 layers of clothing including a sweatshirt and my winter jacket, while carrying another jacket in my arms. Everyone looked at me like "what are you doing dressed like that when we are landing in the south of France in August" only with more of the antipathy you might expect from French people. Whatever. It was cheaper than the $7/kg I would have been charged for excess baggage.

Actually, this was a much milder alternative to the original idea I came up with when I found out how expensive the excess baggage rate was for my airline. What I really wanted to do was sew myself a fat suit and stuff it with a bunch of clothes. I figured they can charge you for excess baggage weight, but they can't charge you for being personally overweight (at least not yet). If only I wasn't one of those people who usually get strip-searched before getting on a plane. Not sure how I would weasel my way out of pretending to weigh 300lbs.

Anyway, when I arrived in Montpellier I was beat, although happy to finally make it to France after what seems like months of preparation. I was met by my host family who helped me take my stuff inside their house, where I will be staying until my apartment is ready on September 1. I am super excited about this! I also saw my new car, a gently used Renault stick shift hatchback. Awwww, how cute and French! I will hopefully be learning to drive that soon? I mean, I know how to drive a stick shift in principle, but will need to learn to maneuver it in France- which is kind of hectic with all of the traffic circles, pedestrians, bicycles, trams, and people on vespas weaving between cars.

For now, I am just finding my groove, getting ready to start practice with the team on Monday night, and French classes at the Universite de Montpellier on September 3. Until then I am determined to unpack as little as possible, besides what I absolutely need. This means I intend to wear the same pants and rotate a few shirts over the next week and a half to avoid having to repack all of my suitcases when I move into my new apartment.

PS: I wanted to include some pictures of my new beautiful town, but one of the various items gone MIA is my camera battery charger. So, now my camera battery is dead and I can't seem to find the charger anywhere. Sigh. Maybe soon.And by soon I mean if and when I actually unpack everything and/or if I figure out how to use French ebay and can get myself a new one.