Interesting Things!

First, let me appologize for my long silence! I realize it has been *actual gasp* 11 days since my last post. That's almost two weeks! I am ashamed. But I do have an excuse, I swear! For most of last week I was touring Brittany with my host family, and then when I returned, I found that my computer's document folder was completely full - meaning I couldn't post any more pictures! I have since labored and remedied the problem, but I will not be able to post about my trip until tomorrow. Sorry! So, while I wait for the 700 or so (I'm not kidding!) photos of Brittany to load onto my computer, I thought I might as well write a fun little ditty about my sweet little pleasures here in Hédé. My last post was notably angsty, and I feel I should probably show you just a few of the fun things I experience in Hédé on a daily basis! I thought I might introduce you to a few things that I'm really enjoying in Hédé.

The Château:
I believe I have already introduced you to the château in Hédé, but I might as well elaborte. Over the past two months, the château and I have become very good friends! Despite the admittably random basketball courts residing within the ruins (Funny, I know) the château is ancient, beautiful and a pleasure to explore. In addition to hidden staircases, crumbling walls and tunnels in the walls, the château is surrounded by a charming wooded forest. Pair that with numerous alcoves in the walls, and I've got my reading nooks mastered! It's a pretty great place to read, especially when Pride and Prejudice and Death Comes to Pemberly give me the urge to enjoy the great outdoors!

 

This is my favorite turret/reading nook!

Not gonna lie, I quite often buy some snacks on my way to the Château and pig out!

The Small Town Flavor:
Despite popular belief, study abroad doesn't have to take place in a large town to be successful. I recently found out that Hédé is the second smallest town in all of France, beaten only by the neighboring town Bazouges. What's more is that Bazouges only just outstripped Hédé this year! For the past few years, Hédé held the title! Needless to say, I was a bit shocked by this information. I knew Hédé was small, but I had no idea it was petite enough to earn a title! But while living in a small town does have its challenges (very few kids my age, long bus ride to school) it is in itself a treat! It's a delight to be able to walk to the town square in under a minute, and the fact that all the stores are so close is quaint. The countryside that surrounds Hédé is also a joy to behold, as it offers wonderful opportunities for country walks.

The Food:
Because of Hédé's wee size, the food available here is very local and not overprocessed (like in some bigger cities). As a result, it is highly delicious! Of course, such cuisine does come with some consequences (Hello, 5-8 pounds!) but the pros much outweigh the cons.

Padi:
Wait, who is Padi? Well, he just happens to be (debatedly) the most adorable member of my host family - my host sister Emilee's dog! For about 4 days, we were treated to the uncomparable pleasure of dogsitting him while Emilee visited Prague. Needless to say, I was relieved to have a surrogate puppy-dog, as I have dearly missed my puppy Joe!

 

So that's my little list of pleasures! I actually have one more funny thing to show you. While quickly researching if it was normal to gain weight on study abroad (It is! HA!) I stumbled upon an extremely entertaining website that actually preaches against study abroad. Of course, I found most of the arguments pretty unfounded, but there was one point that I found especially fun.

4. The most annoying thing on God’s green earth is how often people post photos of buildings you could google if you wanted to see, update their travel blogs about nights out with new friends that you genuinely don’t care about and overall feel that people are more interested than they actually are, though no one has the heart to tell them the truth.

Obviously, I found this post quite funny, especially considering it basically describes my blog! But really, who doesn't want to see some blurry, Google-esque images of ancient buildings and read about human relations that they have no investment in? Isn't this lovely blog-reading experience exactly what everyone seeks in their lives? Because I personally find it awesome! But then again, I'm biased...